South Korean shares opened higher Wednesday, tracking overnight gains on Wall Street as investors awaited the results of the US presidential election.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 20.98 points, or 0.9 percent, to 2,364.29 in the first 15 minutes of trading.  

The local market followed gains on Wall Street as preelection polls favored Democratic nominee Joe Biden over President Donald Trump, raising investor hopes for reduced uncertainties surrounding a fresh stimulus deal that has stalled amid differences between the Democrats and the White House.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 2.06 percent Tuesday (New York time), and the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite gained 1.85 percent.

In Seoul, most large-caps traded higher.

Pharmaceutical giant Samsung Biologics spiked 3.29 percent, and Celltrion jumped 2.9 percent.

Market bellwether Samsung Electronics shed 0.34 percent, while No. 2 chipmaker SK hynix gained 0.37 percent.

Leading chemical firm LG Chem added 1.07 percent, while Hyundai Motor, the country's largest automaker, moved up 1.76 percent.

Internet portal giant Naver rose 2.47 percent, and rival Kakao soared 4.16 percent

The local currency was trading at 1,127.9 won against the US dollar, up 6.2 won from the previous session's close. (Yonhap)