Seoul stocks open higher on U.S. gains

South Korean shares opened higher Tuesday, tracking gains on Wall Street, helped by positive U.S. economic data and a rebound in global oil prices.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index rose 9.12 points, or 0.44 percent, to 2,059.59 in the first 15 minutes of trading.

The main index continued to gain after marking a 1.61 percent increase for the whole of last week. On Friday, it closed at 2,050.47 points, hitting fresh yearly highs.

Investors will closely watch the minutes of the Federal Open Market Committee's discussion of monetary policy in July, which will be released later this week.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 0.32 percent, with the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite index climbing 0.56 percent.

Most large-cap stocks advanced across the board.

Market bellwether Samsung Electronics Co. rose 0.97 percent, leading cosmetics maker AmorePacific Corp. gained 1.03 percent and No. 2 chipmaker SK hynix Inc. was up 0.44 percent.

Among decliners, top automaker Hyundai Motor Co. fell 0.37 percent and LG Chem lost 0.75 percent.

The local currency was trading at 1,096.20 won against the U.S.dollar, up 7.10 won from the previous session's close. (Yonhap)