South Korean stocks got off to a weak start Monday, as investors took to the sidelines on growing worries about a U.S. stimulus cut drawing near, analysts said.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) slid 8.8 points, or 0.46 percent, to 1,911.31 in the first 15 minutes of trading.

Large-cap stocks moved downward, with market bellwether Samsung Electronics falling nearly 1 percent and leading automaker Hyundai Motor dipping 1.3 percent.

Investors are awaiting the July minutes of the Federal Reserve's monetary meeting, which will be released on Thursday, U.S. time. The transcript will likely shed more light on the timing and size of the Fed's tapering of its bond purchases.

The local currency was trading at 1,114.45 won against the U.S. dollar as of 9:15 a.m., down 0.85 won from Friday's close. (Yonhap News)