The benchmark KOSPI stood at 6,575.02 as of 10:30 a.m., down 4.34 percent. It had fallen as low as 6,400.81 shortly after the open before recovering some ground, with a high of 6,614.39.
A sell-side sidecar was triggered shortly after the opening bell as KOSPI 200 futures tumbled, following an overnight selloff in U.S. chip stocks and a surge in long-term global bond yields.
Retail investors bought 2.184 trillion won worth of shares, while foreign investors cashed out 1.3102 trillion won as institutions followed with 975 billion won worth of sale.
Samsung Electronics fell 5.77 percent to 253,000 won and SK hynix dropped 7.1 percent to 1.544 million won. Hyundai Motor was down 3.45 percent at 420,000 won.
Hanwha Aerospace bucked the decline, jumping 7.59 percent to 1.233 million won after its U.S. defense unit was selected for a U.S. Army mobile artillery prototype program. Korea Electric Power Corp. fell 4.14 percent to 31,250 won.
Meanwhile the KOSDAQ, rose 0.22 percent to 836.07 after swinging between 804.02 and 840.50.
Foreign investors bought 91 billion won worth of shares, while retail investors sold 70.3 billion won as institutions shed 21.5 billion won.
Robotis gained 5.56 percent to 294,500 won and Silicon2 rose 4.04 percent to 46,300 won, while HLB slipped 2.67 percent to 42,000 won.
Ananti surged 14.22 percent to 5,140 won as inter-Korean cooperation stocks rallied on reports that U.S. President Donald Trump was seeking a meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un as early as this fall.
Whereas in Japan, Nikkei 225 fell 2.01 percent to 66,107.68 and China's Shanghai Composite lost 0.96 percent to 3,952.12.
Brent crude rose 0.96 percent to $91.925 a barrel, while West Texas Intermediate gained 1.06 percent to $85.830. The won strengthened 0.52 percent to 1,406.1 per dollar.
AJP Takeaways
· The KOSPI remained down 4.34 percent at 10:30 a.m. after an early plunge triggered a sell-side sidecar.
· Foreign and institutional investors sold a combined 2.285 trillion won, while retail investors bought 2.184 trillion won.
· Samsung Electronics and SK hynix remained the biggest drags, while the KOSDAQ edged higher.
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