South Korean stocks traded higher late Friday morning on the back of big-cap tech gains amid eased woes about the global financial system.
The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) had added 24.94 points, or 1.02 percent, to 2,478.10 as of 11:20 a.m.
The index opened higher, tracking Wall Street gains overnight, and had risen further on solid buying by foreign and institutional investors.
Experts said fears about the global banking turmoil, sparked by the failure of American lenders, have eased recently, and investors are awaiting the core personal consumption expenditures price index, key U.S. inflation data, set to be released Friday, to gauge the Federal Reserve's monetary policy path.
In Seoul, tech and chemical shares led the upturn of the market.
Market bellwether Samsung Electronics rose 1.11 percent, and chip giant SK hynix advanced 0.23 percent.
Leading battery maker LG Energy Solution remained unchanged, while Samsung SDI jumped 0.97 percent. LG Chem soared 2.73 percent.
No. 1 automaker Hyundai Motor climbed 1.49 percent, and its affiliate Kia went up 1.76 percent.
POSCO Holdings surged 12.52 percent, and POSCO Chemical advanced 5.16 percent.
Internet giant Naver edged up 0.25 percent, and Kakao, the operator of the popular mobile messenger KakaoTalk, rose 0.5 percent.
The local currency was changing hands at 1,291.25 won against the greenback as of 11:20 a.m., up 7.75 won from the previous session's close.
Source: Yonhap News Agency