South Korean stocks opened nearly flat Friday as foreign and institutional investors continued to sell over the yield hike concerns on Wall Street.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index fell 0.57 point, or 0.02 percent, to 3,086.09 points in the first 15 minutes of trading.

Top cap Samsung Electronics slipped 0.12 percent, but No. 2 chipmaker SK hynix gained 2.78 percent.

Leading chemical firm LG Chem climbed 0.32 percent, while rechargeable battery maker Samsung SDI retreated 1.65 percent.

Giant internet portal operator Naver declined 0.64 percent, and its rival Kakao fell 1.4 percent. Top automaker Hyundai Motor added 1.91 percent.

The local currency was trading at 1,107.2 won against the US dollar, up 0.4 won from the previous session's close. (Yonhap)