Shares open lower as foreigners, institutional investors sell off Seoul shares

The Kospi fell 9.17 points, or 0.36 percent, to 2,557.69 in the first 15 minutes of trading.

Screens in Hana Bank's trading room in central Seoul show stock and foreign exchange markets close on Monday. [NEWS1]

Shares opened lower Tuesday despite overnight gains on Wall Street due to foreigners and institutional investors' sell-offs.

The Kospi fell 9.17 points, or 0.36 percent, to 2,557.69 in the first 15 minutes of trading.

Overnight, the S&P 500 gained 0.5 percent to continue its weekslong rally, and the Nasdaq 100 climbed 0.6 percent to hit a record high for the second consecutive session. The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed flat.

In Seoul, most of the big-cap shares started in negative territory.

Samsung Electronics fell 0.14 percent, and SK hynix lost 0.59 percent.

For battery makers, LG Energy Solution retreated 0.59 percent, and Samsung SDI shed 0.66 percent.

Posco Holdings was sharply down by 1.43 percent, and Posco Future M plunged more than 2 percent.

Carmaker Hyundai Motor also slipped 0.47 percent, and Kia dropped 0.45 percent.

LG Chem also slid 1.31 percent.

The local currency was trading at 1,300.40 won against the dollar, up 3.2 won from the previous session's close.

BY KIM JU-YEON, YONHAP [kim.juyeon2@joongang.co.kr]