Seoul stocks trim earlier gains late Wed. morning

Seoul's stock market saw a modest rebound late Wednesday morning, trading slightly higher as lower oil prices offered some relief. However, the gains were short-lived as high U.S. Treasury yields continued to dampen investor confidence. The Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI), which had opened 1.06 percent higher, managed to regain only 17.62 points, or 0.26 percent, by 11:20 a.m., trading at 6,888.43.

U.S. stocks ended the day on a slightly weaker note, despite a dip in oil prices, as persistently high Treasury yields continued to dampen sentiment. Semiconductor shares managed to outperform the broader market, with the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index jumping 1.32 percent. This provided a glimmer of optimism for major South Korean chip manufacturers, Samsung Electronics and SK hynix.

Samsung Electronics, a bellwether in the market, saw its shares decline by 0.83 percent, while SK hynix, a key competitor, managed to gain 1.42 percent. The parent company of SK hynix, SK Square, added 1.43 percent to its share price. On the other hand, Samsung Electro-Mechanics, an electronics component subsidiary of Samsung Electronics, shed 0.46 percent of its value.

The Korean won depreciated against the U.S. dollar, trading at 1,358.2 won per dollar as of 11:20 a.m., marking a 4.2 won decline from the previous day's closing rate.