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SEOUL, Oct. 20 (Yonhap) -- South Korean shares opened sharply lower Tuesday, weighed down by losses in major tech heavyweights as investors attempted to cash in recent gains amid woes over investments in the artificial intelligence (AI) value chain.
After opening 0.6 percent lower, the benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) fell 130.58 points, or 2.26 percent, to 5,637.43 as of 9:15 a.m., bucking overnight gains on Wall Street.
The index has risen for two consecutive sessions after a sharp dip amid woes over AI-related sectors. It plunged a combined 20.7 percent over seven trading sessions from Oct. 6 to Thursday.
Overnight, U.S. stocks ended mixed as technology shares rebounded from their steepest weekly drop since June.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average edged down 0.07 percent, while the benchmark S&P 500 rose 0.41 percent and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index gained 1.11 percent to finish at 26,430.89.
In Seoul, tech stocks led the decline.
Market bellwether Samsung Electronics gave up 1.38 percent and its chipmaking rival SK hynix declined 4.07 percent.
Samsung Electro-Mechanics, an electronics component affiliate of Samsung Electronics, shed 2.22 percent.
The Korean won was trading at 1,326.2 won against the U.S. dollar at 9:15 a.m., up 6.9 won from the close of the previous stock trading session.
Financial data is shown on a screen inside the dealing room of Hana Bank in central Seoul on Oct. 19, 2026, after the market close. (Yonhap)
khj@yna.co.kr
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