Seoul shares drop nearly 6 percent amid global market volatility

SEOUL, Aug. 19 (Yonhap) -- Seoul shares dipped nearly 6 percent Wednesday, led by steep losses in chipmakers, as rising oil prices and global bond yields dampened investor sentiment. The Korean won rose against the U.S. dollar.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) fell 398.66 points, or 5.8 percent, to close at 6,471.17, after touching an intra-day low of 6,400.81.

Shortly after the opening bell, program trading in KOSPI-listed shares was suspended for five minutes as the bourse operator activated a sell-side sidecar. The measure is triggered when the KOSPI 200 futures index falls 5 percent or more for at least one minute.

Overnight, Wall Street's major indexes closed lower, as stalled peace efforts between the United States and Iran weighed on investor sentiment and pushed oil prices higher.

The U.S. 30-year Treasury yield rose to its highest level since 2007 amid concerns that elevated energy prices could keep inflation high.

In Seoul, chipmakers led the market decline.

Market bellwether Samsung Electronics plunged 7.82 percent, and its chipmaking rival SK hynix tumbled 9.75 percent.