Seoul stocks opened sharply lower Monday as investors went to lock in profits after a record-breaking surge the previous session.
The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) opened 237.18 points, or 3.6 percent lower, at 6,358.27, at the opening bell.
The index bucked a rally on Wall Street on Friday (local time), as robust earnings from Amazon fueled investor optimism for the artificial intelligence (AI) sector.
Revenue at Amazon's cloud computing unit jumped 37 percent in the second quarter ending in June, exceeding market expectations.
"We may see investors attempt profit-taking early this week, as the benchmark KOSPI vaulted around 17 percent Friday, the sharpest single-day gain on record," Han Ji-young, an analyst from Kiwoom Securities, said.