An electronic board showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index at a dealing room of the Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul on Monday. (Yonhap)

South Korean stocks got off to a strong start Monday, led by gains from large-cap shares.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index added 36.08 points, or 1.49 percent, to 2,452.94 in the first 15 minutes of trading.

Market bellwether Samsung Electronics soared 5.79 percent, and leading battery maker LG Energy Solution increased 2.43 percent.

Top automaker Hyundai Motor rose 3.4 percent, and its sister affiliate Kia jumped 2.84 percent.

Energy shares were the biggest winners as KEPCO climbed 3.98 percent and Korea Gas Corp. advanced 1.73 percent.

The local currency was trading at 1,394.95 won against the greenback as of 9:15 a.m., up 3.85 won from the previous session. (Yonhap)