Seoul shares narrowed earlier losses late Friday morning on retail buying, with investors awaiting the U.S. Federal Reserve chief's speech for clues on its rate policy.
The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) fell 14.06 points, or 0.55 percent, to 2,523.62 as of 11:20 a.m.
The benchmark index opened lower, tracking overnight losses on Wall Street. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 1.1 percent, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite declined 1.9 percent.
Individuals bought a net 270 billion won (US$203 million) worth of stocks, offsetting institutions and foreigners' combined stock selling valued at 259 billion won.
Investors are keeping an eye on the speech Friday (U.S. time) to be delivered by Fed Chair Jerome Powell. The Fed chief is expected to outline whether rates should continue to rise to combat high inflation.
In Seoul, most large-cap stocks were mixed.
Market heavyweight Samsung Electronics Co. fell 1.3 percent, No. 2 chipmaker SK hynix Inc. dropped 3.1 percent, national flag carrier Korean Air Co. shed 0.4 percent, and leading steelmaker POSCO Holdings shed 1.2 percent
Among gainers, leading battery maker LG Energy Solution rose 2.1 percent, top carmaker Hyundai Motor Co. climbed 0.1 percent, leading cosmetics firm Amorepacific Corp. gained 4 percent, and leading wireless services provider SK Telecom Co. was up 0.1 percent.
The local currency was trading at 1,327.80 won against the U.S. dollar at 11:20 a.m., down 5.2 won from the previous session's close.
Source: Yonhap News Agency