Seoul shares open lower on tech, brokerage losses

South Korean stocks opened lower Monday as tech firms, brokerages and other large-cap issues lost ground.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index fell 16.18 points, or 0.8 percent, to 2,012.81 in the first 15 minutes of trading.

Market bellwether Samsung Electronics dropped nearly 1 percent, while panel maker LG Display plunged about 4 percent. Major brokerage firms also started lower.

The local currency was trading at 1,158.95 won against the U.S. dollar as of 9:15 a.m., down 5.95 won from Friday's close. (Yonhap)