South Korean stocks opened sharply lower Wednesday, tracking an overnight Wall Street plunge amid growing fears of economic recession.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) fell 32.67 points, or 1.35 percent, to trade at 2,389.42 in the first 15 minutes of trading.

Overnight, Wall Street tumbled amid bleaker-than-expected economic indicators that added to investor jitters over a possible recession. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped 1.56 percent, while tech-heavy Nasdaq composite sank 2.98 percent.

In Seoul, market behemoth Samsung Electronics dropped 1.35 percent, with No. 2 chipmaker SK hynix losing 1.78 percent.

Battery giant LG Energy Solution sank 2.56 percent after a report that its massive investment plan in the US will be delayed due to rising costs.

Internet portal operator Naver moved down 2.57 percent, and top carmaker Hyundai Motor retreated 3.49 percent.

The local currency was trading at 1,290.75 won against the US dollar, down 7.35 won from the previous session's close. (Yonhap)