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Stock market in South Korea (Yonhap) |
South Korean stocks opened higher Friday on hopes for a quick economic rebound, backed by overnight gains on Wall Street and strong local exports data.
The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 26.77 points, or 0.85 percent, to 3,189.05 points in the first 15 minutes of trading.
Stocks got off to a strong start, tracking a 1.77 percent gain on the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite. The Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 finished up 0.55 percent and 1.06 percent, respectively.
Optimism for an economic rebound at home also remained high, fueled by a 53.3 percent on-year increase in local exports in the first 20 days of May.
Top cap Samsung Electronics added 1.64 percent, and No. 2 chipmaker SK hynix advanced 1.63 percent.
Internet portal operator Naver moved up 1.85 percent, while pharmaceutical giant Samsung Biologics shed 1.01 percent.
Leading chemical firm LG Chem climbed 0.66 percent, and top automaker Hyundai Motor increased 1.34 percent. Giant steelmaker POSCO retreated 0.68 percent.
The local currency was trading at 1,126.7 won against the US dollar, up 5.3 won from the previous session's close. (Yonhap)
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