Seoul shares open higher on U.S. gains

South Korean stocks opened higher on Wednesday, tracking overnight gains on Wall Street following expectations that U.S. firms fared well in the first quarter, analysts said.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) gained 10.2 points, or 0.53 percent, to 1928.83 in the first 15 minutes of trading.

Shares gathered ground across the board, with market behemoth Samsung Electronics rising 0.27 percent and top chipmaker SK hynix adding 2.08 percent. No. 1 carmaker Hyundai Motor moved up 0.82 percent.

U.S. stocks ended higher on Tuesday also on the country's improved housing data, with the Dow Jones industrial average adding 1.05 percent and the NASDAQ composite index rising 1.11 percent.

The local currency was trading at 1,119.65 won against the U.S. dollar as of 9:15 a.m., up 1.15 won from Tuesday's close. (Yonhap News)