South Korean stocks opened lower Tuesday as investors sat on the sidelines ahead of the announcement of the United States' jobs data for September slated for later this week, analysts said.
The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) moved down 3.11 points, or 0.15 percent, to 2,049.90 in the first 15 minutes of trading.
Shares lost ground across the board, with market behemoth Samsung Electronics falling 1.02 percent and No. 1 carmaker Hyundai Motor losing 0.38 percent. Leading chipmaker SK hynix shed 2.2 percent.
In contrast, logistics gathered ground, with Hyundai Merchant Marine adding 4.01 percent and top air carrier Korean Air rising 1.12 percent. Hanjin Shipping moved up 0.87 percent.
The local currency was trading at 1,063.10 won against the U.S. dollar as of 9:15 a.m., down 0.90 won from Monday's close. (Yonhap News)
