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An electronic board showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index at a dealing room of the Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul on Tuesday. (Yonhap) |
South Korean stocks opened higher Tuesday, tracking overnight gains on Wall Street, with the US Federal Reserve's upcoming interest rate-setting meeting in focus.
The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index added 9.36 points, or 0.39 percent, to 2,382.38 in the first 15 minutes of trading.
Overnight, US shares finished higher following last week's deep losses. The Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped 1.58 percent, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite rose 1.26 percent.
The Federal Reserve will begin its two-day meeting on Tuesday, where it is widely expected to deliver a 50-basis point hike, smaller than what it has been.
But investors remain cautious over Fed Chair Jerome Powell's press conference on Wednesday.
The US consumer price index will also come out Tuesday.
In Seoul, tech shares rose on bargain hunting to lead the overall upturn.
Market heavyweight Samsung Electronics rose 0.84 percent, and chip giant SK hynix added 0.49 percent.
Leading battery maker LG Energy Solution grew 0.20 percent, and Samsung SDI surged 0.69 percent. No. 1 chemical firm LG Chem advanced 0.48 percent.
Bio shares also gathered ground, with Samsung Biologics increasing 0.98 percent and Celltrion rising 0.57 percent.
Top automaker Hyundai Motor and its affiliate Kia traded flat.
The local currency was trading at 1,303.50 won against the US dollar as of 9:15 a.m., up 3.70 won from the previous session's close. (Yonhap)
