Seoul shares down 1.88 pct in late-morning trade

SEOUL (Yonhap) - South Korean stocks traded 1.88 percent lower late Monday morning, as a U.S. credit rating downgrade spooked investor sentiment here, analysts said.
The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) dropped 36.55 points to 1,907.2 as of 11:20 a.m.
Institutional investors snapped up shares but foreign and retail investors went on a selling spree.
Large-cap exporters lost ground, as an unstable U.S. economy and lingering debt problems in the eurozone prompted investors to curtail their exposure to the shares.
Market bellwether Samsung Electronics lost 0.38 percent and top carmaker Hyundai Motor fell 0.98 percent, while leading steelmaker POSCO dropped 0.79 percent.
The local currency was trading at 1,069.85 won to the greenback as of 11:20 a.m., down 2.45 won from Friday's close.