South Korean stocks started lower Wednesday due to losses from large-cap shares in tech and auto firms.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index lost 15.27 points, or 0.58 percent, to 2,602.53 in the first 15 minutes of trading.

Overnight, Wall Street finished mixed. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.4 percent, while the Nasdaq composite rose 0.8 percent to a record high on better-than-expected earnings from Alphabet, the parent company of Google.

In Seoul, most market heavyweights began in negative territory.

Market bellwether Samsung Electronics dropped 0.84 percent, and top carmaker Hyundai Motor declined 0.22 percent.

Major battery maker Posco Future M retreated 0.63 percent, and leading oil refinery SK Innovation decreased 0.83 percent.

Bank shares were also weak, with Shinhan Financial Group falling 4.41 percent and Hana Financial Group dipping 2.77 percent.

The local currency was trading at 1,384.25 won against the US dollar, up 2.25 won from the previous session. (Yonhap)