Seoul stocks down 3% late Thursday morning after weaker-than-expected Samsung earnings

South Korean stocks traded 3 percent lower late Thursday morning, reversing earlier gains as Samsung Electronics delivered weaker-than-expected third-quarter earnings.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) lost 181.1 points, or 3.01 percent, to 5,831.34 as of 11:20 a.m., after rising as high as 6,100.11.

The index opened slightly higher, tracking overnight gains on Wall Street after the Federal Reserve held its benchmark interest rate steady at 3.75-4 percent.

The market turned lower shortly before 10 a.m., following the release of Samsung’s third-quarter earnings, which fell slightly short of analysts’ expectations.

The world’s largest memory chipmaker reported a record third-quarter operating profit of 107.44 trillion won, up 783.1 percent from a year earlier, while revenue surged 126.9 percent to 195.25 trillion won, on robust artificial intelligence (AI)-driven chip demand.

Market heavyweights traded mixed.

Market bellwether Samsung Electronics fell 6.61 percent, while chip giant SK hynix increased 0.4 percent.

Battery maker LG Energy Solution dipped 9.76 percent after its parent company, LG Chem, announced plans to sell 2.5 trillion won worth of shares in the battery subsidiary as part of efforts to boost shareholder value.

Shares of construction companies involved in a consortium led by Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power (KHNP) for a nuclear power project in the Czech Republic sank after the state-run nuclear operator said it had ended contract negotiations over disagreements on key terms.

Doosan Enerbility plunged 12.21 percent, while Daewoo Engineering & Construction tumbled 21.79 percent following KHNP’s announcement.

The Korean won was trading at 1,333.5 won against the U.S. dollar at 11:20 a.m., up 8.5 won from the previous stock trading session’s close.