Seoul shares up 1.47 pct in late Mon. morning trading

Seoul [South Korea], July 18:South Korean stocks traded 1.47 percent higher late Monday morning on buying by foreigners amid eased concerns over a bigger interest rate hike by the U.S. Federal Reserve.
The Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) added 34.37 points to 2,365.35 as of 11:20 a.m.
The market opened higher and had extended gains further, as U.S. Federal Reserve officials indicated a 75-basis-point rate hike at the rate-setting meeting next week, rather than a larger 1 percentage-point rate increase.
Investors also welcomed the news that U.S. retail sales logged a stronger-than-expected growth in June of 1 percent amid high inflation.
Offshore investors picked up shares on the Seoul bourse, offsetting selling by individuals and institutions.
Most big-cap shares gathered ground, with major tech firms and carmakers pulling up the index.
Market bellwether Samsung Electronics Co. rose 2 percent, and No. 2 chipmaker SK hynix Inc. surged 2.84 percent.
Leading carmaker Hyundai Motor increased 0.82 percent on upbeat quarterly earnings forecast, and its affiliated Kia added 1.01 percent.
Internet portal operator Naver spiked 5.41 percent, and platform giant Kakao climbed 3.71 percent.
Financials also rose. KB Financial Group soared 4.99 percent, and Shinhan Financial Group jumped 4.34 percent.
But leading bio stocks fell, with Samsung Biologics sliding 1.1 percent and pharmaceutical company Celltrion losing 2.68 percent.
LG Energy Solution also skidded 2.38 percent, and Samsung SDI lost 0.91 percent.
The local currency was changing hands at 1,317.30 won against the greenback as of 11:20 a.m., up 8.68 won from the previous session's close.
Source: Yonhap