Seoul stocks open sharply lower on recession woes, Kospi drops below 2,200

Seoul stocks opened sharply lower on Tuesday falling below the 2,200 point threshold, as investors took to the sidelines amid growing recession woes.

Electronic display boards at Hana Bank in central Seoul show stock and foreign exchange markets on Tuesday morning. [YONHAP]

Seoul stocks opened sharply lower on Tuesday falling below the 2,200 point threshold, as investors took to the sidelines amid growing recession woes.

The benchmark Kospi was down 1.16 percent to 2,199.75 points as of 9:42 a.m., falling below 2,200 for the first time since Oct. 17 last year.

Wall Street was closed for the New Year's holiday, while major European stock markets closed more than 1 percent higher overnight on relatively sound manufacturing data.

In Seoul, most heavyweights got off to a weak start.

Samsung Electronics slid down 0.72 percent, while SK hynix dipped 2.11 percent.

Among gainers, LG Chem was up 0.66 percent, Samsung SDI advanced 1 percent, and Hyundai Motor inched up 0.64 percent.

The local currency was changing hands at 1,272.5 won against the dollar, down 0.1 won from the previous session's close.

BY CHO JUNG-WOO, YONHAP [cho.jungwoo1@joongang.co.kr]