South Korean stocks opened a tad lower Tuesday as Wall Street ended mixed ahead of key US inflation data.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index slipped 5.59 points, or 0.22 percent, to 2,507.62 in the first 15 minutes of trading.

On Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed down 0.17 percent and the Nasdaq Composite added 0.18 percent as investors awaited consumer price data slated for Wednesday, which is expected to affect the Federal Reserve's next steps.

In Seoul, market heavyweights fell as tech giant Samsung Electronics lost 0.91 percent and top automaker Hyundai Motor retreated 1.23 percent.

Financial shares also lost ground, with KB Financial Group sinking 0.71 percent and Hana Financial Group sliding 0.71 percent.

But refinery and battery sectors trended higher. SK Innovation rose 2.22 percent and leading battery producer LG Energy Solution gained 1.08 percent.

The local currency was trading at 1,324.4 won against the US dollar at 9:15 a.m., down 3 won from Monday's close. (Yonhap)