Seoul shares opened sharply higher Monday, exceeding the 4,000 mark for the first time, amid hopes that the United States and China soon could strike a sweeping trade deal.
The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index rose 81.55 points, or 2.07 percent, to 4,023.14 in the first 15 minutes of trading.
After a six-day streak of record gains since last Wednesday, the Kospi paused Thursday as investors locked in profits but rebounded to end in positive territory Friday.
On Friday, US stocks also advanced, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average up 1.01 percent and the tech-heavy Nasdaq climbing 1.15 percent.
In Seoul, most large-cap shares traded higher.
Market bellwether Samsung Electronics jumped 2.83 percent, and chip rival SK hynix surged 4.31 percent.
Top carmaker Hyundai Motor rose 1.19 percent, leading shipbuilder HD Hyundai soared 13.99 percent, and shipbuilder Hanwha Ocean gained 3.99 percent.
Among decliners, leading steelmaker Posco Holdings fell 0.92 percent, while dominant tobacco maker KT&G shed 0.37 percent.
The local currency was trading at 1,435.05 won against the greenback as of 9:15 a.m., up 2.05 won from the previous session's close. (Yonhap)
khnews@heraldcorp.com
