South Korean stocks got off to a weak start Thursday on worries about the direction of the U.S. monetary policy following a vague stance from the Federal Reserve after its meeting, analysts said.
The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) fell 9.13 points, or 0.44 percent, to 2,050.45 in the first 15 minutes of trading.
Most shares lost ground across the board, with top-cap Samsung Electronics sliding 0.3 percent and Hyundai Heavy Industries, the world's biggest shipyard, dipping 1.5 percent.
The Fed once again pledged to hold the stimulus program steady for the time being given the slowing economy, but it didn't confirm the market expectation widely betting that it will start tapering the program from March next year.
The Korean currency was trading at 1,060.25 won against the U.S. dollar as of 9:15 a.m., down 0.05 won from Wednesday's close. (Yonhap News)
