Shares open higher on Wall Street gains

The Kospi climbed 8.68 points, or 0.33 percent, to 2,608.70 in the first 15 minutes of trading.

Screens in Hana Bank's trading room in central Seoul show stock and foreign exchange markets open on Friday. [YONHAP]

Stocks got off to a bullish start Friday in line with overnight gains on Wall Street.

The Kospi climbed 8.68 points, or 0.33 percent, to 2,608.70 in the first 15 minutes of trading.

U.S. stock indexes gained ground overnight, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average rising 0.87 percent and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite adding 1.26 percent amid continued hopes that the U.S. Federal Reserve would ease its monetary policy.

In Seoul, blue chips traded higher across the board.

Samsung Electronics rose 0.80 percent, and chipmaker SK hynix jumped 1.28 percent.

Battery maker LG Energy Solution inched up 0.12 percent, and Posco Holdings rose 0.72 percent.

Automaker Hyundai Motor also climbed 0.20 percent, and its smaller affiliate Kia added 0.72 percent.

The local currency was trading at 1,299.40 won against the dollar, up 5.70 won from the previous session's close.

BY SEO JI-EUN, YONHAP [seo.jieun1@joongang.co.kr]