Stocks open higher on US gains

SEOUL, June 2 (Yonhap) -- South Korean stocks opened higher Friday, tracking overnight gains on Wall Street.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 15.33 points, or 0.65 percent, to 2,359.94 in the first 15 minutes of trading.

Large-cap stocks were mixed across the board.

Market bellwether Samsung Electronics advanced 1.34 percent, No. 2 chipmaker SK hynix gained 1.24 percent and leading cosmetics company AmorePacific was up 0.44 percent.

Among losers, top carmaker Hyundai Motor declined 3.02 percent on profit-taking. No. 1 chemical company LG Chem declined 0.99 percent, and the country's No. 2 automaker Kia Motors was down 1.29 percent.

The local currency was trading at 1,121,95 won against the U.S. dollar, up 0.05 won from the previous session's close.

kyongae.choi@yna.co.kr
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