▲ A dealing room at Hana Bank is seen in Seoul on Feb. 9, 2026 (Yonhap)

stocks-open

Seoul stocks open higher on U.S. gains

SEOUL, Feb. 10 (Yonhap) -- South Korean stocks kicked off higher Tuesday, tracking overnight gains on Wall Street led by eased artificial intelligence (AI) bubble concerns.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) climbed 39.13 points, or 0.74 percent, to 5,337.17 in the first 15 minutes of trading, rising above the landmark 5,300-point mark.

Overnight, the Nasdaq composite gained 0.9 percent, and the S&P 500 added 0.47 percent as investors chipped in tech shares amid soothed concerns over AI valuation and awaited the planned release of key U.S. economic reports throughout this week. The Dow Jones Industrial Average edged up 0.04 percent.

In Seoul, large cap shares kicked off mixed.

Semiconductor heavyweights Samsung Electronics and SK hynix increased 0.6 percent and 1.24 percent, respectively, tracking bullish U.S. tech shares.

Auto giant Hyundai Motor soared 3.45 percent, and its sister Kia rose 1.17 percent.

Financial shares also started strong, with KB Financial up 2.05 percent and Shinhan Financial jumping 3.43 percent. Samsung Life Insurance advanced 2.64 percent.

On the other hand, leading battery maker LG Energy Solution lost 1.14 percent, and defense giant Hanwha Aerospace shed 2.35 percent.

Power plant builder Doosan Enerbility went down 1.26 percent, and Korea Electric Power dipped 1.44 percent.

The Korean won was trading at 1,459.0 won against the U.S. dollar as of 9:15 a.m., up 1.3 won from the previous session.

(END)

[ⓒ K-VIBE. 무단전재-재배포 금지]