Seoul stocks bucked gains on Wall Street to open lower Monday as investors dumped tech heavyweights.
The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index was down 31.68 points, or 0.63 percent, to 5,028.01 points, as of 9:15 a.m.
Major stock indexes in the US closed higher Friday, led by a rebound in chipmakers despite fears of tighter artificial intelligence regulations after the Democrats' midterm sweep linger.
The S&P 500 added 0.31 percent, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq rose 1.09 percent.
Investors are digesting fresh uncertainties surrounding Nvidia Corp. after the company announced it has launched an independent investigation into allegations its chief Jensen Huang was targeted by a Chinese spy.
They are also closely following the moves from the Federal Reserve for cues on the next US policy directions.
In Seoul, most large-cap shares were trading lower.
Chip giant Samsung Electronics edged up 0.26 percent, while SK hynix inched down 0.09 percent.
Carmaker Hyundai Motor shed 0.89 percent, defense giant Hanwha Aerospace fell 3.33 percent, and financial firm KB Financial declined 1.13 percent.
The Korean won was quoted at 1,360 won against the US dollar as of 9:15 a.m., up 3 won from the previous trading session's close. (Yonhap)
