Seoul shares drop on financial shares losses

SEOUL, Dec. 16 (Yonhap) -- South Korean stocks opened lower Tuesday, weighed down
by falling financial shares following overnight losses on Wall Street, analysts
said.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) fell 11.8 points, or 1.02
percent, to 1,146.39 in the first 15 minutes of trading.
Wall Street tumbled Monday as concerns over a scandal hit major investment banks.
Bernard Madoff, the former chairman of the tech-heavy Nasdaq index, was arrested
last week in connection with an alleged multi-billion-dollar investment fraud
scheme.
The Dow Jones industrial average fell 0.75 percent and Nasdaq plunged 2.10 percent.
The local currency was trading at 1,367.25 to the U.S. dollar as of 9:15 a.m.,
down 0.25 won from Monday's close.
pbr@yna.co.kr
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