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Seoul shares open sharply lower on Trump tariff woes
SEOUL, Feb. 3 (Yonhap) -- South Korean stocks opened sharply lower Monday on concerns over the United States' decision to impose high tariffs on goods imported from Canada and Mexico, potentially affecting South Korean businesses operating there.
The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) plunged 56.45 points, or 2.24 percent, to 2,460.92 in the first 15 minutes of trading.
On Saturday (U.S. time), U.S. President Donald Trump announced he will impose 25 percent tariffs on imports from Canada and Mexico and 10 percent on goods from China.
The move, set to begin Tuesday, is expected to adversely affect Samsung Electronics, LG Electronics and other major Korean companies that have production bases in those countries.
Blue chips retreated across the board, with market heavyweight Samsung Electronics down 2.1 percent and its chipmaking rival SK hynix plunging 3.77 percent.
Automotive and steel shares also traded in negative territory. Hyundai Motor and Kia slipped 1.46 percent and 2.25 percent, respectively, and top steelmaker POSCO Holdings plummeted 4.03 percent.
Financial and bio shares also lost ground. KB Financial was down 2.07 percent, and Samsung Biologics slumped 3.15 percent.
The local currency was trading at 1,449.10 won against the U.S. dollar at 9:15 a.m., sharply down 16.4 won from the previous session.
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