Kospi rises nearly 2% as U.S. data eases slowdown fears

Shares opened sharply higher Friday as major U.S. data eased economic slowdown fears.

A screen in Hana Bank's trading room in central Seoul shows the Kospi opening on Friday. [YONHAP]

Shares opened sharply higher Friday as major U.S. data eased economic slowdown fears.

The benchmark Kospi rose 52.43 points, or 1.98 percent, to 2,696.93 in the first 15 minutes of trading.

Overnight, major U.S. indexes rallied as the latest retail sales data showed that shoppers are still driving the economy.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1.4 percent, the S&P 500 increased 1.61 percent and the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite soared 2.34 percent.

The U.S. consumer price index for July, released while the Korean stock markets were closed for the Liberation Day holiday on Thursday, also strengthened bets the Federal Reserve will start cutting its rates soon.

In Seoul, Samsung Electronics advanced 2.59 percent, and SK hynix shot up 5.09 percent.

Battery maker LG Energy Solution jumped 2.08 percent, and Samsung SDI gained 2.01 percent.

Automaker Hyundai Motor soared 3.32 percent, and its affiliate Kia climbed 2.05 percent.

Financial firms also kicked off strong, with KB Financial up 1.78 percent, Shinhan Financial Group up 2.91 percent and Hana Financial up 2.12 percent.

Trading firm Samsung C&T also gained more than 3.5 percent.

The local currency was trading at 1,363.2 won against the U.S. dollar, up 2.6 won from the previous session's close.

BY YOON SEUNG-JIN, YONHAP [yoon.seungjin@joongang.co.kr]