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Seoul shares open lower ahead of long holiday

Sept. 17, 2013 - 09:42 By 윤민식
South Korean stocks opened lower Tuesday ahead of a golden week amid lingering jitters over the U.S. Federal Reserve's next policy meeting, analysts said.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) slid 11.24 points, or 0.56 percent, to 2,002.13 in the first 15 minutes of trading.

Market bellwether Samsung Electronics sank 1.2 percent, with No. 1 carmaker Hyundai Motor sliding nearly 1 percent.

Analysts predicted the Seoul bourse won't see an upward move as investors will likely retreat from making aggressive bets ahead of the Chuseok holiday, known as the national harvest celebration.

The three-day holiday begins on Sept. 18.

The local currency was trading at 1,084.40 won against the U.S. dollar as of 9:15 a.m., down 2.2 won from Monday's close. (Yonhap News)