South Korean stocks dropped nearly 1 percent on July 17 as investor sentiment was dampened by US President Donald Trump’s comments on trade talks with China. The local currency lost ground against the US dollar.
The benchmark Kospi dropped 18.95 points, or 0.91 percent, to 2,072.92. Trading volume was heavy at 752 million shares worth 4.55 trillion won ($3.85 billion), with losers far outnumbering winners 677 to 174.

Institutional investors offloaded a net 86.2 billion won, while foreigners and individuals scooped up a net 32.8 billion won and 60.5 billion won, respectively.

The Korean won closed at 1,181.30 won against the US dollar, down 3.70 won from the previous session.

By Ram Garikipati and newswires (ram@heraldcorp.com)