South Korean shares opened sharply lower on March 19 amid attacks on Middle East energy facilities during the US- and Israel-led war against Iran. The US Federal Reserve's decision to keep rates unchanged further dampened sentiment. The KOSPI fell 2.16% in the first 15 minutes.
The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) dropped 128.08 points, or 2.16 percent, to 5,796.95 in the first 15 minutes of trading on March 19. This followed Israel's attack on Iran's largest South Pars gas field and Iran's retaliatory strike on a major liquefied natural gas site in Qatar amid the US- and Israel-led war against Iran, which drove up global oil prices. The US Federal Reserve's decision to maintain its policy rate in the 3.5-3.75 percent range also sapped investors' risk appetite. Overnight, the Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped 1.63 percent, the Nasdaq Composite slid 1.46 percent, and the S&P 500 pulled back 1.36 percent. In Seoul, most top-cap shares opened lower: Samsung Electronics lost 2.64 percent, SK hynix slipped 2.84 percent, Hyundai Motor shed 3.12 percent, Kia went down 1.71 percent, SK Square dipped 2.22 percent, LG Energy Solution decreased 1.96 percent, Hanwha Aerospace dropped 1.33 percent, HD Hyundai Heavy contracted 2.37 percent, and Celltrion tumbled 3.1 percent. The Korean won traded at 1,500.4 against the US dollar at 9:15 a.m., sliding 17.3 won from the previous session.
