South Korean stocks opened almost flat Thursday as investors sat on the sidelines ahead of the European Central Bank's monetary meeting, analysts said.
The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) edged up 0.13 percent, or 2.55 percent, to 2,016.22 in the first 15 minutes of trading.
Blue-chip shares traded mixed across the board, with market behemoth Samsung Electronics moving down 0.28 percent and No. 1 carmaker Hyundai Motor climbing 2 percent. Top steelmaker POSCO gained 0.31 percent.
The local currency was trading at 1,060.25 won against the U.S. dollar as of 10:15 a.m., up 0.65 won from Wednesday's close.
South Korea's stock market opened at 10:00 a.m. Thursday and will close at 4:00 p.m., an hour later than usual, due to the national college entrance exam. (Yonhap News)
