Seoul shares open lower as U.S. tech shares tumble

Seoul shares opened lower Friday, tracking overnight losses on Wall Street after investors cashed in profits from major tech shares despite signs of cooling U.S. inflation. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index shed 23.8 points, or 0.82 percent, to 2,867.55 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Overnight, the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite plunged 1.95 percent, and the S and P 500 dipped 0.88 percent. The Dow Jones Industrial Average, on the other hand, increased 0.08 percent. The U.S. inflation for June fell 0.1 percent from a month earlier, marking the first on-month decline since May 2020, sparking hope for a rate cut by the Federal Reserve later this year. Losses from major tech shares, however, weighed down on the market with Nvidia crashing 5.57 percent and Tesla sinking 8.44 percent. In Seoul, top tech giant Samsung Electronics plunged 2.63 percent, and No. 2 chipmaker SK hynix slid 3.53 percent. Leading carmaker Hyundai Motors moved down 0.72 percent, while its sister Kia added 0.08 percen t. Auto parts maker Hyundai Mobis decreased 0.85 percent. Pharmaceutical firms, on the other hand, started higher, with Samsung Biologics rising 0.49 percent and Celltrion climbing 1.13 percent. The local currency was trading at 1,373.7 won against the U.S. dollar at 9:15 a.m., up 5.1 won from the previous session's close. Source: Yonhap News Agency