SEOUL, South Korean shares traded sharply lower late Tuesday morning amid growing concerns that U.S. rate cuts may be further away than anticipated. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) lost 14.80 points, or 0.57 percent, to 2,576.51 as of 11:20 a.m. The KOSPI had opened slightly lower, tracking overnight losses on Wall Street. The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed 0.71 percent lower after U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell made remarks that suggested there may be no near-term rate reductions. In Seoul, large caps traded mixed. Market kingpin Samsung Electronics slipped 0.4 percent, while No. 2 chipmaker SK hynix added 0.83 percent. Leading pharmaceutical firm Celltrion gained 1.05 percent, with top mobile service provider SK Telecom advancing 0.2 percent. Top automaker Hyundai Motor shed 0.21 percent, while its smaller affiliate Kia Motors tumbled 3.38 percent. The local currency was trading at 1,330.80 won against the U.S. dollar, unchanged from the previous session's clo se. Source: Yonhap News Agency