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Kospi opens lower on tech losses after record high

Published: 09 Jan. 2026, 09:36 Updated: 09 Jan. 2026, 11:51

Korean bourse Kospi opens lower on Jan. 9. Numbers are shown on a digital board at Hana Bank in central Seoul. [YONHAP]

Seoul shares opened lower Friday as investors took profits after the benchmark index set a record high the previous session.

The Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) fell 24.7 points, or 0.54 percent, to 4,527.67 in the first 15 minutes of trading. A day earlier, the index rose 1.31 percent to close at an all-time high of 4,552.37 after hitting an intraday high of 4,610.93.

Overnight, U.S. stocks ended mixed. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.55 percent, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite fell 0.44 percent.

Technology stocks led the decline. Market bellwether Samsung Electronics fell 2.02 percent, while chip giant SK hynix declined 2.65 percent. Leading refiner SK Innovation fell 1.46 percent, and leading cosmetics firm Amorepacific shed 0.67 percent.

Among gainers, top carmaker Hyundai Motor rose 0.43 percent, and leading shipbuilder HD Hyundai Heavy Industries climbed 2.41 percent. Defense giant Hanwha Aerospace jumped 7.34 percent, and Korea Aerospace Industries, the country's sole aircraft manufacturer, soared 2.1 percent.

The local currency was trading at 1,453.25 won against the U.S. dollar at 9:15 a.m., up 2.65 won from the previous session's 1,450.60.

Yonhap