Seoul: Seoul shares pared earlier losses late Tuesday morning, supported by gains in technology stocks, though investors remained cautious over U.S. President Donald Trump's latest tariff threats. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) had risen 4.73 points, or 0.15 percent, to 3,180.50 as of 11:20 a.m.
According to Yonhap News Agency, the KOSPI opened lower, bucking overnight gains on Wall Street. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.2 percent, and the tech-savvy Nasdaq composite added 0.27 percent. Trump has notified key U.S. trading partners of new tariff rates set to take effect on Aug. 1 unless they offer improved terms in ongoing negotiations.
Retail investors bought a net 34.88 billion won (US$25 million) worth of stocks, while institutions and foreign investors sold 72.03 billion won and 23.02 billion won, respectively. Large-cap stocks were mixed, with market bellwether Samsung Electronics rising 1.28 percent, and state-run utility Korea Electric Power Corp. jumping 2.17 percent. Leading battery maker LG Energy Solution climbed 0.16 percent, and defense industry firm Hanwha Aerospace climbed 2.6 percent.
Among the decliners, top carmaker Hyundai Motor fell 3 percent, and leading steelmaker POSCO Holdings shed 0.47 percent. Chipmaker SK hynix dropped 2.5 percent, LG Chem lost 1.28 percent, and No. 2 battery maker Samsung SDI declined 1.24 percent. The local currency was trading at 1,381.30 won against the U.S. dollar at 11:20 a.m., down 0.1 won from the previous session.