South Korean stocks opened higher Wednesday following an overnight Wall Street rally fueled by growing anticipation of an economic recovery, analysts said.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) advanced 2.95 points, or 0.15 percent, to 1986.65 in the first 15 minutes of trading.

Shares gained ground across the board, with chip giant SK hynix rising 0.17 percent and No. 1 carmaker Hyundai Motor adding 1.36 percent. Top steelmaker POSCO advanced 0.15 percent.

U.S. stocks ended higher Tuesday on the country's improved housing data, with the Dow Jones industrial average rising 0.77 percent and the NASDAQ composite index adding 0.53 percent.

The local currency was trading at 1,107.25 won against the U.S.

dollar as of 9:15 a.m., down 1.55 won from Tuesday's close. (Yonhap News)