Seoul stocks slightly down late Fri. morning

SEOUL, Oct. 22 (Yonhap) -- South Korean stocks traded slightly down late Friday morning as investors take a wait-and-see stance over a debt crisis of Evergrande Group, a leading Chinese property developer.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) slipped 0.21 point, or 0.01 percent, to 3,004.22 as of 11:25 a.m.

Stocks got off to a lackluster start amid the uncertainties surrounding Evergrande.

Overnight, the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite added 0.62 percent to 15,215 points on hopes of strong corporate earnings, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 0.02 percent to 35,603 points.

In Seoul, market bellwether Samsung Electronics moved up 0.28 percent to 70,400 won, and No. 2 chipmaker SK hynix gained 1.45 percent to 97,700 won.

Leading car battery firm LG Chem advanced 1.86 percent to 821,000 won, pharmaceutical giant Samsung Biologics added 0.69 percent to 874,000 won, and Hyundai Motor, the country's largest carmaker, traded flat at 207,500 won.

Among losers, internet portal operator Naver lost 1.58 percent to 404,000 won, and steelmaker POSCO shed 2.41 percent to 303,500 won.

The local currency was trading at 1,179.45 won against the U.S. dollar, down 2.25 won from the previous session's close.

jwc@yna.co.kr
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