Seoul shares sharply down late Thursday morning on renewed Iran tensions; won sharply down

Officials work at a dealing room in Hana Bank, Seoul, Thursday. Yonhap

Korean stocks traded sharply lower Thursday morning, retreating from record highs, amid renewed uncertainty over negotiations between the United States and Iran to end their conflict in the Middle East.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) was down 188.89 points, or 2.15 percent, to 8,612.6 as of 11:20 a.m.

Overnight, U.S. stocks ended lower amid concerns that an escalation of hostilities between the U.S. and Iran could undermine prospects for a peace agreement.

In Seoul, most large-cap shares traded in negative territory, while foreigners extended their sell-offs to a 19th consecutive session.

Market bellwether Samsung Electronics was down 1.94 percent, while its rival chipmaker SK hynix fell 3.56 percent.

Top automaker Hyundai Motor shed 4.39 percent, and electronic components maker Samsung Electro-Mechanics went down 4.1 percent.

The Korean won was trading at 1,529.3 won against the U.S. dollar at 11:20 a.m., down 12.9 won from the previous session.