Seoul shares open higher as makers pull gains, following Wall Street

Overnight, U.S. stocks gained ground as investors looked ahead to scheduled earnings announcements by major companies and the U.S. Federal Reserve's rate decision meeting later this week.

Screens in Hana Bank's trading room in central Seoul show stock markets close on Monday. [YONHAP]

Shares got off to a strong start Tuesday, tracking overnight gains on Wall Street.

The Kospi rose 18.70 points, or 0.75 percent, to 2,519.35 in the first 15 minutes of trading.

Overnight, U.S. stocks gained ground as investors looked ahead to scheduled earnings announcements by major companies and the U.S. Federal Reserve's rate decision meeting later this week.

The S&P 500 climbed 0.8 percent to close at a fresh high, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the Nasdaq composite both rose 0.6 percent and 1.1 percent, respectively.

In Seoul, tech, chemical and steel stocks led the overall gains. Chipmaker SK hynix added 0.15 percent, and chemical company LG Chem jumped 1.29 percent.

Steelmaker Posco Holdings climbed 5.67 percent, and battery maker LG Energy Solution added 2.38 percent.

Financial shares also gained momentum, with KB Financial rising 0.36 percent and Samsung Life up 1.37 percent.

The local currency was trading at 1,331.35 won against the dollar, down 4.35 won from the previous session's close.

BY KIM JU-YEON, YONHAP [kim.juyeon2@joongang.co.kr]