SEOUL– South Korean stocks extended their losses Tuesday morning, taking a cue from overnight Wall Street losses ahead of the U.S. Federal Open Market Committee meeting.
The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index had decreased 16.37 points, or 0.62 percent, to 2,629.28 points as of 11:20 a.m. on institutional and foreign sell-offs.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite lost 2.04 percent, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed flat.
The U.S. Federal Reserve is widely expected to start hiking the interest rates from near zero this week, as the Ukraine conflict could further jack up U.S. inflation.
In Seoul, market bellwether Samsung Electronics lost 0.57 percent, and No. 2 chipmaker SK hynix shed 2.16 percent.
Chemical heavyweight LG Chem lost 2.41 percent, and top carmaker Hyundai Motor moved down 0.91 percent.
Among gainers, financial heavyweight KB Financial Group added 1.79 percent, with bank heavyweight Kakao Bank advancing 2.81 percent.
The local currency was trading at 1,242.5 won against the U.S. dollar, up 0.25 won from the previous session’s close.
Source: Yonhap News Agency