The Korea Herald

소아쌤

Seoul shares open lower on blue-chip losses

By KH디지털2

Published : Dec. 2, 2015 - 10:06

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South Korean stocks opened lower Wednesday as market heavyweights lost ground on woes over a widely expected rate hike in the U.S.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index shed 6.5 points, or 0.32 percent, to 2,017.43 in the first 15 minutes of trading.

Top market cap Samsung Electronics fell 1.44 percent after the tech giant appointed a new head for its flagship mobile business that is struggling with falling margins amid tougher global competition.

In contrast, automakers traded bullish after releasing robust November sales numbers in the domestic market.

Industry leader Hyundai Motor rose 0.33 percent and its sister company Kia Motors increased 1.08 percent.

 The local currency was trading at 1,154.3 won against the U.S. dollar as of 9:15 a.m., up 3.7 won from Tuesday's close. (Yonhap)