A screen at the dealing room of Hana Bank’s headquarters in Seoul shows the benchmark KOSPI and Kosdaq indices, Friday. Yonhap
Seoul stocks traded higher late Friday morning in choppy trading as investors snapped up bargain-priced semiconductor shares following the previous session's sharp sell-off.
After opening 1.2 percent higher, the benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) extended its gains, rising 163.52 points, or 2.11 percent, to 7,809.61 as of 11:20 a.m.
The index plunged 7.89 percent the previous session, dragged by a heavy sell-off in Samsung Electronics and SK hynix.
Overnight, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose more than 1 percent to a record high as weaker-than-expected June jobs data eased concerns over a near-term interest rate hike. The tech-heavy Nasdaq fell 0.8 percent, weighed down by another sharp sell-off in semiconductor stocks.
