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| ▲ Traders are seen working inside a dealing room at Hana Bank in central Seoul, on March 16, 2026. (Yonhap) |
stocks-morning
Seoul stocks inch down late Mon. morning as oil price woes continue
SEOUL, March 16 (Yonhap) -- South Korean stocks traded slightly lower late Monday morning, as the ongoing conflict in the Middle East and a sharp rise in crude oil prices dampened investor sentiment.
The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) was down 7.53 points, or 0.14 percent, to 5,479.71 as of 11:20 a.m.
The index turned south in late morning trading, after opening sharply higher above the 5,500 mark, as foreigners and institutional investors offloaded market heavyweights.
Major stock indexes on Wall Street closed lower Friday, as investors monitored the latest developments in the Middle East. The S&P 500 inched down 0.61 percent, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq retreated 0.93 percent.
Brent crude, the international standard, was trading above US$100 per barrel, as the war in Iran continued to disrupt shipping and production of the commodity in the region.
In Seoul, most large caps were trading lower, while semiconductor shares gathered ground.
Samsung Electronics added 0.65 percent, while its chipmaking rival SK hynix advanced 2.64 percent.
In contrast, top automaker Hyundai Motor shed 3 percent, battery giant LG Energy Solution dropped 1.36 percent, and defense giant Hanwha Aerospace inched down 0.74 percent.
The local currency was trading at 1,497.8 won against the U.S. dollar as of 11:20 a.m., down 4.1 won from the previous session.
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