Seoul stocks open higher on U.S. gains

SEOUL, March 23 (Yonhap) -- South Korean shares got off to a strong start Wednesday, tracking overnight gains on Wall Street, led by institutional investors' purchase of big-cap shares.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 26.48 points, or 0.98 percent, to reach 2,736.48 as of 9:15 a.m.

Overnight, the U.S. stock market finished higher, as investors digested recent hawkish comments by Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell on rate hikes. The Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 0.74 percent, and the Nasdaq composite surged 1.95 percent.

On the Seoul bourse, most large-cap shares gathered ground, with steel and financials leading the overall gains.

Market bellwether Samsung Electronics advanced 1 percent, and leading carmaker Hyundai Motor jumped 1.44 percent.

No. 1 steelmaker POSCO Holdings spiked 3.58 percent, and KB Financial Group climbed 2.39 percent.

The local currency was trading at 1,214.20 won against the U.S. dollar, down 3.9 won from the previous session's close.

graceoh@yna.co.kr
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