Key facts
- Seoul stocks reversed early gains to trade lower late Monday morning.
- The KOSPI index fell 0.83% to 6,634.99.
- Foreign investors were net sellers, while retail and institutional investors were net buyers.
- Eased Middle East tensions and a $950 billion AI cooperation deal between South Korean and U.S. tech firms were announced.
- Major tech shares, including Samsung Electronics and SK hynix, declined.
- SK innovation and Hanwha Aerospace also saw significant drops.
South Korean stocks turned lower late Monday morning, reversing earlier gains as major technology shares lost ground. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) shed 55.63 points, or 0.83 percent, to 6,634.99 as of 11:20 a.m., after opening 1.73 percent higher.
Foreign investors were net sellers, offloading nearly 1.7 trillion won, which counteracted a combined 1.6 trillion won in buying from retail and institutional investors.
The market's initial rise was partly attributed to eased Middle East tensions, following the United States' suspension of attacks on Iran. South Korea and U.S. tech companies also agreed to pursue cooperation projects worth a combined $950 billion during an artificial intelligence summit hosted by the South Korean government.
However, the positive sentiment did not hold, with tech shares trading lower in Seoul. Top-cap Samsung Electronics fell 0.6 percent, and SK hynix declined 0.8 percent. Samsung Electro-Mechanics, an affiliate of Samsung Electronics, decreased 1.06 percent, and SK Square, the parent of SK hynix, slumped 5.59 percent.
Other notable decliners included leading oil refinery SK innovation, which plunged 9.15 percent, and defense giant Hanwha Aerospace, which tumbled 8.17 percent.
The Korean won was trading at 1,468.1 won against the U.S. dollar as of 11:20 a.m., down 9.6 won from the previous session.