Seoul Shares Tumble Again on US Woes

South Korean stocks tumbled again Thursday as foreigners and institutions dumped blue chips after the U.S. bailout of American International Group failed to contain a confidence crisis.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) plunged 46.99 points, or 3.3 percent, to 1,378.28 in the first 15 minutes of trading. The index rebounded a little to 1,391.49 as of 10 a.m.

Most large caps sank into the red, with financials losing heavily. Top lender Kookmin Bank plunged more than 7 percent and brokerage giant Mirae Asset & Securities was down 4.52 percent.

Tech, auto and other export-driven stocks were also rattled. Market heavyweight Samsung Electronics fell more than 3 percent and leading automaker Hyundai Motor and its affiliate Kia Motors also fell more than 3 percent.

U.S. stocks dropped to a three-year low Wednesday as the U.S. bailout of AIG failed to calm market jitters. The Dow Jones industrial average plunged 4.06 percent and the tech-dominated Nasdaq composite index nose-dived 4.94 percent.

The tech-savvy Kosdaq market also opened sharply lower due to the overnight Wall Street fall. The index was quoted at 436.03, down 2 percent, as of 10 a.m.

The Korean currency was trading at 1,147 won to the U.S. dollar as of 9:15 a.m., down 17.1 won from Wednesday's close.