stocks-morning
KOSPI falls below 3,000-pt threshold on inflation concerns
SEOUL, March 5 (Yonhap) -- South Korean stocks fell below the 3,000-point mark late Friday morning as investors were disappointed by the absence of comments from the U.S. Federal Reserve to help stave off inflation concerns.
The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index fell 46.49 points, or 1.53 percent, to 2,997.0 points as of 11:20 a.m.
After a lackluster start, stocks deepened losses after the 2.11 percent overnight fall on the Nasdaq Composite, with yields of the U.S. benchmark 10-year Treasury having surged above the 1.5-percent threshold.
Tech stocks, sensitive to high inflation, also plunged in Seoul, while insurance and financial shares gained due to speculation of post-pandemic inflation.
Top cap Samsung Electronics lost 0.73 percent, and No. 2 chipmaker SK hynix shed 2.46 percent.
Giant internet portal operator Naver dipped 5.11 percent, with its rival Kakao moving down 3.32 percent.
Pharmaceutical giant Samsung Biologics declined 4.14 percent, and Celltrion retreated 1.47 percent.
Leading chemical firm LG Chem added 0.69 percent, while top automaker Hyundai Motor went down 1.91 percent.
The local currency was trading at 1,131.9 won against the U.S. dollar, down 6.8 won from the previous session's close.
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