Seoul shares open lower on tech, finance losses

SEOUL, Sept. 26 (Yonhap) -- South Korean stocks opened lower Friday as investors unloaded tech and financial issues on lingering jitters over financial instability despite overnight rallies in U.S. markets, analysts said.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) fell 3.32 points, or 0.22
percent, to 1,498.31 in the first 15 minutes of trading.
Tech shares were the main contributors to the decline, with market leader Samsung
Electronics and smaller LG Electronics both starting in negative territory.
Major brokerage and bank issues also dragged the market down. Mirae Asset &
Securities started lower, while Shinhan Financial Group lost more than 1 percent.
Steel shares, however, started higher, trimming the decline. Steelmaking giant
POSCO and Hyundai Steel gained ground.
On Thursday, U.S. stocks surged on reports that key lawmakers agreed to the
government-led US$700 billion bail-out package for the ailing financial system.
The Dow Jones industrial average jumped 1.82 percent and the tech-dominated
Nasdaq composite index rose 1.43 percent.
The local currency was trading at 1,153.1 won to the U.S. dollar as of 9:15 a.m.,
up 5.1 won from Thursday's close.
kokobj@yna.co.kr
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