Seoul stocks open higher amid recession woes

Seoul stocks opened slightly higher Tuesday amid recession woes.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) rose 17.51 points, or 0.76 percent, to 2,334.65 points in the first 15 minutes of trading.

Investors have remained watchful over the U.S. Fed's next policy direction as its Chair Jerome Powell recently reiterated the Fed will keep an aggressive monetary tightening mode for the time being despite eased inflation pressure.

Wall Street was closed Monday for the Christmas holiday.

In Seoul, large caps traded higher across the board.

Market bellwether Samsung Electronics added 0.52 percent, and No. 2 chipmaker SK hynix advanced 0.65 percent.

Leading chemical firm LG Chem jumped 2.9 percent, and battery maker Samsung SDI edged up 1.28 percent.

Internet portal operator Naver climbed 1.68 percent, and leading automaker Hyundai Motor traded 0.63 percent higher from the previous session.

The local currency was exchanging hands at 1,271.7 won against the dollar, up 3.1 won from the previous session's close.

Yonhap