Seoul stocks start higher on Wall Street gains

South Korean shares opened higher Thursday, taking their cue from overnight gains on Wall Street.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index  rose 2.77 points, or 0.13 percent, to 2,171.07 in the first 15 minutes of trading.

Most large caps traded mixed with market kingpin Samsung Electronics falling 0.42 percent.

Top automaker Hyundai Motor declined 1.47 percent, while top steelmaker POSCO rose 0.71 percent.

Naver, the operator of the country's top Internet portal, gained 0.59 percent.

The local currency was trading at 1,119.20 won against the US dollar, up 4.6 won from the previous session's close. (Yonhap)