South Korean stocks opened higher Wednesday, taking a cue from an overnight rise on Wall Street.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) gained 5.42 points, or 0.23 percent, to 2,363.83 in the first 15 minutes of trading.

Local stocks got a boost from US peers, despite lingering uncertainties from the ongoing talks for the new US virus relief package.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite advanced 0.33 percent on Tuesday (New York time), with the Dow Jones Industrial Average adding 0.4 percent and the S&P 500 climbing 0.47 percent.

In Seoul, most large caps traded mixed.

Market bellwether Samsung Electronics added 0.82 percent, but No. 2 chipmaker SK hynix dropped 0.7 percent.

Top pharmaceutical firm Samsung Biologics slid 0.44 percent, and Hyundai Motor, the country's largest automaker, declined 1.79 percent.

Internet portal giant Naver jumped 3.1 percent, with its rival Kakao adding 1.84 percent.

Leading chemical maker LG Chem lost 0.32 percent, while rechargeable battery maker Samsung SDI rose 0.35 percent.

The local currency was trading at 1,136.65 won against the US dollar, up 1.6 won from the previous session's close. (Yonhap)