stocks-morning
Seoul shares almost flat late Wed. morning after opening higher
SEOUL, Nov. 8 (Yonhap) -- South Korean stocks traded nearly flat late Wednesday morning after opening higher in line with overnight gains on Wall Street.
The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) had dipped 1.09 points, or 0.04 percent, to 2,442.87 as of 11:20 a.m.
U.S. stocks closed higher overnight, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average edging up 0.2 percent and the Nasdaq Composite rising 0.9 percent amid an easing of Treasury yields there.
In earlier trading, the KOSPI climbed as high as nearly 1 percent but later lost ground due to a selling spree by foreign and retail investors.
Tech and chemical shares lost ground, with chip behemoth Samsung Electronics slipping 0.71 percent and LG Chem sliding 1.42 percent.
Leading automakers Hyundai Motor and Kia also lost 0.4 percent and 0.13 percent, respectively.
Bio-related stocks, however, fared better, with SK bioscience climbing 2.97 percent and Celltrion advancing 1.35 percent.
The local currency was trading at 1266.60 won against the U.S. dollar at 11:20 a.m., up 8.30 won from the previous session's close.
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