SEOUL, Aug. 19 (Yonhap) -- Seoul shares opened sharply lower Wednesday, following overnight losses on Wall Street, as rising bond yields and oil prices weighed on technology stocks and dampened investor sentiment.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) lost 341.06 points, or 4.96 percent, to 6,528.77 at the opening bell.

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 Dow Jones Industrial Average shed 0.22 percent, while the benchmark S&P 500 lost 0.69 percent. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index fell 1.33 percent.

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

ejkim@yna.co.kr

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