Stocks lose ground again amid uncertainty in the U.S.

Shares ended lower for a fourth straight day Monday as investors sat on the sidelines ahead of the release of major U.S. economic data, which will give clues on the U.S. Federal Reserve's monetary policy direction.

Screens in Hana Bank's trading room in central Seoul show the Kospi closing at 2,567.82 points on Monday, down 0.4 percent, or 10.26 points, from the previous trading session. [YONHAP]

Shares ended lower for a fourth straight day Monday as investors sat on the sidelines ahead of the release of major U.S. economic data, which will give clues on the U.S. Federal Reserve's monetary policy direction. The won fell in value against the dollar.

The Kospi lost 10.26 points, or 0.4 percent, to close at 2,567.82.

Trade volume was slim at 313.6 million shares worth 6.7 trillion won ($5.1 billion), with losers outpacing winners 500 to 358.

Institutions unloaded 436 billion won worth of stocks, offsetting individual and foreign investors' stock purchases valued at a combined 424.7 billion won.

On Friday, the S&P 500 rose 0.2 percent, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average and Nasdaq composite added 0.1 percent, respectively.

Investors' eyes are on key U.S. economic data to be released later this week, including the December consumer price index and the producer price index.

The Bank of Korea is also set to hold a meeting Thursday to decide on whether to keep its rate steady for the eighth time.

Last week, the Fed's minutes from its December meeting indicated rates could remain at high levels for some time and there will be possible rate cuts later this year, dampening hopes for early rate cuts.

In Seoul, big-cap tech and auto stocks dragged the Kospi down.

Samsung Electronics dipped 0.13 percent to 76,500 won, and SK hynix dropped 1.09 percent to 136,000 won.

Posco Holdings shed 2.19 percent to 469,500 won.

Auto shares also went south, with Hyundai Motor down 0.85 percent to 185,700 won and Kia down 2.95 percent to 88,900 won.

But Naver went up 2.72 percent to 226,500 won and Kakao up 2.51 percent to 57,200 won.

Samsung SDS jumped 4.75 percent to 169,800 won, and Ecopro Materials rose 7.46 percent to 216,000 won.

The local currency traded at 1,316.00 won against the dollar, up 0.6 won from the previous session's close.

Bond prices, which move inversely to yields, closed lower. The yield on three-year government bonds rose 1.4 points to 3.298 percent, and the return on the benchmark U.S. 10-year government bonds gained 4.7 points to 4.044 percent.

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