Seoul stocks sink over 1 pct late Thursday morning

SEOUL, May 14 (Yonhap) -- South Korean stocks fell more than 1 percent late Thursday morning amid growing concerns over global economic recovery from the novel coronavirus pandemic.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) shed 26.32 points, or 1.36 percent, to 1,914.10 as of 11:20 a.m.

The index got off to a weak start, tracking Wall Street losses after Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell warned a slower-than-expected economic recovery from the novel coronavirus fallout.

Investor sentiment was dented by renewed trade tensions between the world's two largest economies after U.S. President Donald Trump ordered the federal pension fund not to invest in Chinese companies.

In Seoul, most large-cap stocks stayed below the flatline.

Market bellwether Samsung Electronics plunged 1.54 percent, and No. 2 chipmaker SK hynix tumbled 2.99 percent.

South Korea's No.1 automaker, Hyundai Motor, lost 1.72 percent, while auto parts maker Hyundai Mobis declined 0.88 percent.

Top chemical firm LG Chem slid 2.98 percent, while major steelmaker POSCO dived 2.89 percent. However, Kakao, which runs the country's leading mobile messenger app KakaoTalk, gained 1.62 percent.

The local currency was trading at 1,228.90 won against the U.S. dollar, down 5.1 won from the previous session's close.
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