An electronic board showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index at a dealing room of the Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul on Friday. (Yonhap)
South Korean stocks opened higher Friday following overnight gains on Wall Street as investors digest the latest job market data.
The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index rose 13.14 percent, or 0.41 points, to 3,213.97 in the first 15 minutes of trading.
US stocks closed higher overnight after data showed that private-sector hiring in August was weaker than expected, reinforcing bets that the Federal Reserve will cut its key rate later this month.
The S&P 500 closed up 0.83 percent, the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite advanced 0.98 percent, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.77 percent.
The US Bureau of Labor Statistics is also set to release the August job report later in the day.
In Seoul, most large-cap shares opened higher.
Top-cap Samsung Electronics traded flat at 70,100 won ($50), while rival SK hynix advanced 3.2 percent.
Defense giant Hanwha Aerospace moved up 1.5 percent, top carmaker Hyundai Motor inched up 0.23 percent, and shipbuilder Hanwha Ocean tumbled 4.71 percent.
The local currency had been quoted at 1,392.2 won against the greenback as of 9:15 a.m., up 0.3 won from the previous session. (Yonhap)