Seoul stocks open higher despite AI woes on Wall Street

▲ The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) is seen on a screen inside the dealing room of Hana Bank in central Seoul on Feb. 4, 2026. (Yonhap)

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Seoul stocks open higher despite AI woes on Wall Street

SEOUL, Feb. 4 (Yonhap) -- South Korean stocks opened slightly higher Wednesday, bucking an overnight fall on Wall Street caused by woes over recent developments in artificial intelligence (AI).

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) added 12.29 points, or 0.23 percent, to 5,300.37 in the first 15 minutes of trading.

Overnight, U.S. stocks closed lower after fresh concerns about the impact of AI on software businesses swept the market.

The S&P500 fell 0.84 percent, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq dipped 1.43 percent.

AI startup Anthropic on Tuesday unveiled new capabilities for its Claude chatbot, including assisting and performing tasks related to legal, sales and network services, raising speculation that AI technology will reshape the software sector.

In Seoul, large cap shares were trading mixed.

Semiconductor heavyweights Samsung Electronics and SK hynix shed 1.73 percent and 1.21 percent, respectively.

IT shares also lost ground, with Naver sliding 1.3 percent and messenger app operator Kakao declining 1.18 percent.

In contrast, industry leader Hyundai Motor advanced 3.97 percent, battery maker LG Energy Solution moved up 2.69 percent, and bio firm Celltrion rose 4.1 percent.

The Korean won was quoted at 1,453 won against the U.S. dollar as of 9:15 a.m., down 7.6 won from the previous session's close.

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