South Korean stocks traded up late Thursday morning as investors digested the U.S. Federal Reserve chairman's hawkish congressional testimony.
The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) had risen 9.57 points, or 0.37 percent, to 2,592.2 as of 11:20 a.m.
Stocks got off to a weak start, tracking overnight Wall Street losses after Fed Chair Jerome Powell reaffirmed the central bank remained focused on wrestling down inflation back to its 2 percent target and that there could be two more quarter-percentage point hikes this year.
"Nearly all FOMC participants expect that it will be appropriate to raise interest rates somewhat further by the end of the year," he said.
In Seoul, market behemoth Samsung Electronics gained 0.99 percent, while SK hynix lost 1.13 percent. Top battery maker LG Energy Solution added 1.25 percent, and Samsung SDI declined 0.43 percent. Steelmaking giant POSCO Holdings increased 2.61 percent.
Hyundai Motor went down 0.49 percent, and Kia traded flat.
The local currency was changing hands at 1,290.1 won against the greenback at 11:20 a.m., up 1.9 won from the previous session's close.
Source: Yonhap News Agency