Seoul stocks opened lower Monday, as investors took to the sidelines ahead of the Federal Reserve's meeting this week.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index retreated 10.32 points, or 0.42 percent, to 2,473.7 points in the first 15 minutes of trading.

Stocks got off to a weak start. The tech-heavy Nasdaq closed up 0.95 percent Friday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 finishing up 0.08 percent and 0.25 percent, respectively.

Signs of slowing US inflation hikes fueled expectations of milder policy tightening at the Fed's rate-setting meeting.

In Seoul, market bellwether Samsung Electronics lost 0.31 percent, and smaller rival SK hynix fell 0.87 percent.

Leading battery maker LG Energy Solution declined 2.96 percent, with portal operator Naver decreasing 0.47 percent.

Top auto maker Hyundai Motor added 0.69 percent, and bio heavyweight Samsung Biologics increased 1.73 percent.

The local currency had been changing hands at 1,229.6 won against the greenback as of 9:15 a.m., up 1.7 won from the previous session's close. (Yonhap)