Seoul shares open higher on techs, oil refiners

South Korean stocks opened higher Wednesday, led by gains in tech firms and oil refiners, analysts said.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index added 6.27 points, or 0.33 percent, to 1,923.41 in the first 15 minutes of trading.

Tech shares gathered ground, with Samsung Electronics adding 0.37 percent and No. 2 chipmaker SK hynix climbing 1.33 percent. LG Electronics advanced 1.46 percent.

Oil refiners also traded bullish, with SK Innovation rising 0.85 percent and S-Oil stepping up 1.85 percent. 

The country's No. 2 carrier Asiana Airlines went up 2.41 percent and was trading at a 52-week high of 7,640 won on rosy earnings outlook from  plunging global oil prices.

The local currency was trading at 1,078.80 won against the U.S. dollar as of 9:15 a.m., up 4.70 won from Tuesday's close. (Yonhap)