Thursday marked the third consecutive day of a bearish run, sparked by renewed concerns over a U.S. rate hike down the road, which could prompt a mass outflow of foreign capital from Korea and other newly emerging markets such as China.

The closing price is the lowest since March 8, when the comparable figure was 1,946.12 points.

"Investor sentiment further deteriorated due to the growing possibility of a rate hike by the U.S. Federal Reserve in June," Hana Financial Investment analyst Lee Young-gon said.

Minutes from the U.S. Fed's Federal Open Market Committee meeting in April, released Tuesday (U.S. time), have suggested a rate hike in June should key indicators, including employment and consumer price inflation, continue showing signs of improvement.

Earlier, the U.S. has said its consumer price inflation rose at the fastest rate in nearly three years in April, with its industrial output also growing at the fastest clip in over a year.

Foreigners offloaded 21.37 billion won worth of local shares, with institutions dumping a net 41.28 billion won. Retail investors scooped up a net 30.69 billion won.

Large caps closed mixed.

Market bellwether Samsung Electronics added 0.16 percent to 1,270,000 won, while leading cosmetics maker AmorePacific plunged 1.07 percent to 416,000 won.

Top automaker Hyundai Motor advanced 1.13 percent to 134,500 won, with its smaller affiliate Kia Motors jumping 1.52 percent to 46,650 won.

Korea's won closed at 1,191.70 won against the U.S. greenback, down 9.10 won from the previous session's close. (Yonhap)