Seoul shares opens lower on weak U.S. economic data

South Korean stocks opened lower Friday on weak U.S. manufacturing and employment data that caused an overnight tumble on Wall Street, analysts said.

The Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) dropped 1.43 percent, or 26.93 points, to 1,862.22 in the first 15 minutes of trading.

Market bellwether Samsung Electronics lost 2.28 percent, with top automaker Hyundai Motor also giving up 1.00 percent.

The local currency was trading at 1,156.80 won to the greenback as of 9:15 a.m., down 5.20 won from Thursday's close. (Yonhap News)