Seoul: Seoul stocks plunged by more than 5 percent Monday, as investors went to lock in profits of semiconductor heavyweights following a record surge the previous session. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) fell 338 points, or 5.12 percent, to 6,257.45.

According to Yonhap News Agency, the index surged by nearly 18 percent on Friday. The market was weighed on by foreign investors who went profit-taking, especially in semiconductor stocks, Lee Kyoung-min, an analyst from Daishin Securities, said.

Shares of SK hynix and Samsung Electronics - the country's two chip giants - rose by almost the daily permissible limit on Friday, on the assessment that the unwinding of leveraged exchange-traded funds is nearing its end. Investor sentiment was also partially lifted on declining oil prices, after U.S. President Donald Trump said he has canceled a potentially massive military assault on Iran.