South Korean shares opened higher Thursday, boosted by market bellwether Samsung Electronics' strong earnings report.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index rose 12.75 points, or 0.52 percent, to 2,447.26 in the first 15 minutes of trading.

Market kingpin Samsung Electronics gained 1.2 percent after releasing its second-quarter earnings through a regulatory filing. 


The tech giant said it racked up 14.1 trillion won ($12.6 billion) in the April-June period, up 72.7 percent from 8.14 trillion won posted a year earlier.

SK hynix, a major chipmaker, was up 2.25 percent.

LG Chem, the country's top chemicals firm, rose 0.77 percent, while AmorePacific, South Korea's leading cosmetics manufacturer, gained 0.53 percent.

The local currency was trading at 1,113.20 won against the U.S. dollar, up 8.60 won from the previous session's close. (Yonhap)