South Korean shares opened slightly lower Thursday as investors became wary of recent dips in global oil prices.
The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index lost 4.45 points, or 0.22 percent, to 2,039.31 in the first 15 minutes of trading.
The decline also followed overnight losses on Wall Street.
The Dow Jones industrial average slipped 0.35 percent to close at 18,481.48, with the tech-heavy Nasdaq plunging 0.81 percent to 5,217.69.
Investors were apparently spooked by an earlier report that US stockpiles of crude jumped by nearly 4.5 million barrels last week, causing global oil prices to plunge.
On Wednesday, the price of Dubai crude, South Korea's benchmark, tumbled 3.14 percent to $45.38 per barrel.
Large caps traded mixed on the Seoul bourse, with market bellwether Samsung Electronics plunging 1.75 percent.
Top automaker Hyundai Motor spiked 1.48 percent, with its smaller affiliate Kia Motors advancing 0.94 percent.
Global steelmaker POSCO shed 0.89 percent.
The local currency was trading at 1,122.75 won against the US dollar, down 0.75 won from the previous session's close. (Yonhap)
