South Korean stocks traded lower late Thursday morning as investors' sentiment was dented by rising woes that the United States may start tapering its economic stimulus sooner than expected, analysts said.
The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) shed 8.49 points, or 0.43 percent, to 1,969.48 as of 11:20 a.m.
Tech shares continued to lose ground, with Samsung Electronics slipping 1.2 percent and top chipmaker SK hynix decreasing 1.9 percent. Flat panel maker LG Display shed 1.02 percent.
Financial firms also traded lower, with Shinhan Financial moving down 0.78 percent and Samsung Life Insurance decreasing 0.92 percent. Hana Financial shed 0.25 percent.
The local currency was trading at 1,053.95 won to the U.S. dollar as of 11:20 a.m., down 1.85 won from Wednesday's close. (Yonhap News)
