South Korean stocks traded 0.68 percent higher late Thursday morning, led by a jump in big-cap tech shares, after fears over a further rate hike by the Federal Reserve were soothed by mixed U.S. jobs data.
The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index had gained 16.46 points to 2,422.15 as of 11:20 a.m.
Overnight, U.S. shares rebounded after a slump the previous session thanks to big tech gains, including Tesla, Alphabet, Microsoft and Amazon.
Investors hope that the Fed will not go for an additional rate hike as recent data showed that the labor market and the service sector cooled a little bit in September.
On the Seoul bourse, top-cap shares traded mixed.
Market bellwether Samsung Electronics dropped 0.59 percent, but No. 2 chipmaker SK hynix jumped 4.33 percent.
Battery shares traded in positive terrain, with industry leader LG Energy Solution advancing 2.52 percent and smaller rival Samsung SDI rising 2.27 percent.
POSCO shares also gained ground.
Steel giant POSCO Holdings jumped 3.13 percent and its battery component-making affiliate POSCO Future M added 1.34 percent.
Internet portal operator Naver rose 0.63 percent, and Kakao, the operator of the country's top mobile messenger, went up 0.48 percent.
Major biotech firm Samsung Biologics shot up 5.21 percent on better-than-expected earnings outlook for this year, and leading chemical producer LG Chem also soared 4.32 percent.
Auto shares were mixed.
Hyundai Motor and its auto parts making affiliate, Hyundai Mobis, went down 0.05 percent and 0.21 percent, respectively, but Kia gained 1.1 percent.
Financial shares lost ground, with KB Financial Group plunging 2.56 percent, Shihan Financial Group retreating 1.57 percent and Hana Financial Group droppin 1.45 percent.
The local currency was trading at 1,345.90 won against the U.S. dollar at 11:20 a.m., up 17.6 won from Wednesday's close.
Source: Yonhap News Agency