Seoul shares trim earlier losses to trade higher late Wed. morning

South Korean shares were slightly up late Wednesday morning after trimming earlier losses. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index had added 2.36 points, or 0.09 percent, to 2,776.65 as of 11:20 a.m. The index had opened lower, tracking overnight losses on Wall Street. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 57.35 points, or 0.14 percent, to close at 40,358.09 Tuesday (U.S. time), with the Nasdaq slipping 10.22 points, or 0.06 percent, to 17,997.35. In Seoul, large caps were mixed. Market kingpin Samsung Electronics lost 0.83 percent, while its chipmaking local rival SK hynix soared 3.17 percent. Leading battery maker LG Energy Solution shed 0.77 percent, while its local rival Samsung SDS gained 0.93 percent. Top pharmaceutical firm Celltrion advanced 2.64 percent, with leading carmaker Hyundai Motor dipping 1.52 percent. The local currency was trading at 1,384.45 won against the U.S. dollar, up 1.75 won from the previous session 's close. Source: Yonhap News Agency