Korea's shares open higher after Powell's comments

A screen in Hana Bank's trading room in central Seoul shows stock and foreign exchange markets open on Wednesday. [YONHAP]

Seoul shares opened higher Wednesday, tracking gains on Wall Street, as Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell expected that this year may see a significant drop in inflation.

The benchmark Kospi rose 21.12 points, or 0.86 percent, to 2,472.83 in the first 15 minutes of trading.

Overnight, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.8 percent to 34,156.69 and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite climbed 1.9 percent to 12,113.79.

Powell said disinflation has begun, though further rate hikes will likely be needed to combat inflation if the job market remains strong.

The Fed raised rates by 25 basis points last week to a band of 4.5 percent to 4.75 percent.

In Seoul, tech and auto stocks were lead gainers.

Samsung Electronics rose 1.1 percent, and chipmaker SK hynix climbed 1.4 percent. Carmaker Hyundai Motor gained 0.1 percent, and state utility Korea Electric Power Corporation was up 0.1 percent.

Among decliners, budget carrier Jeju Air fell 1.4 percent, Hanjin KAL, parent firm of Korean Air, declined 0.6 percent, and Daewoo Shipbuilding & Engineering shed 0.9 percent.

The local currency was trading at 1,252.5 won against the dollar, down 2.8 won from the previous session's close.

Yonhap