South Korean shares opened higher Tuesday, tracking overnight gains on Wall Street amid signs that the spread of the coronavirus could be slowing.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 42.10 points, or 2.35 percent, to 1,833.98 in the first 15 minutes of trading.

The main index tracked overnight gains on Wall Street. The Dow Jones industrial average rose 7.73 percent, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite index climbed 7.33 percent.

US stocks soared as the number of new COVID-19 cases in the United States and Europe fell, which boosted investor sentiment, said Huh Jae-hwan, a strategist at Eugene Investment Co.

In South Korea, the coronavirus has killed 186 people, mostly elderly patients with underlying illnesses. Its virus cases topped 10,000.

In Seoul, most large-cap stocks rose across the board.

Market bellwether Samsung Electronics Co. rose 2.57 percent, No. 2 chipmaker SK hynix Inc. was up 3.85 percent, and top carmaker Hyundai Motor Co. gained 3.27 percent.

The local currency was trading at 1,218.95 won against the US dollar, up 10.35 won from the previous session's close. (Yonhap)