SEOUL, March 3 (Xinhua) -- South Korean stocks tumbled over 7 percent on Tuesday after a bout of panic selling amid ongoing Middle East conflict.
The KOSPI dropped 452.22 points, or 7.24 percent, to close at 5,791.91, and the smaller KOSDAQ dived 55.08 points, or 4.62 percent, to finish at 1,137.70.
The KOSPI opened 1.26 percent lower and widened its earlier losses throughout the session.
The extreme volatility activated the sell sidecar as the KOSPI 200 futures dropped over 5 percent during the trading.
The sidecar refers to a temporary halt of program trading orders for five minutes that is triggered when the KOSPI 200 futures rise or fall by more than 5 percent for at least one minute.
The South Korean won versus the U.S. dollar exchange rate surged by over 25 won per dollar, climbing to a mid-1,460 won range.
Foreign investors led the sell-off in the KOSPI, while retail investors prevented the deeper rout through a dip-buying in the KOSPI. ■
