Seoul stocks extend gains late Monday morning

SEOUL, Jan. 13 (Yonhap) -- South Korean stocks extended gains late Monday morning as large-cap tech stocks turned bullish.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) had risen 12.28 points, or 0.56 percent, to reach 2,218.67 as of 11:20 a.m.

Large-cap stocks traded higher after starting a tad lower, as major chipmakers such as Samsung Electronics continued to build up gains for a rosy earnings outlook.

Market bellwether Samsung Electronics added 0.34 percent, and major chipmaker SK hynix increased 0.51 percent.

Samsung BioLogics, a biopharmaceutical affiliate of Samsung Group, gained 0.34 percent, and LG Chem, a leading chemical company, was up 2.77 percent.

The local currency was trading at 1,155.8 won against the U.S. dollar, up 5.5 won from Friday's close.

khj@yna.co.kr
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