Seoul shares opened sharply lower Friday after losses on Wall Street, where surging oil prices triggered a sell-off amid escalating tensions in the Middle East. The decline also followed the latest US inflation data, which raised the possibility that the US Federal Reserve could increase interest rates to curb inflation. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index initially fell 3.29% before narrowing its losses to 183.12 points, or 2.6%, at 6,850.80 as of 9:15 a.m.