Stocks open higher, won hits two-month high

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

Seoul shares opened higher Wednesday as investors expect the U.S. Federal Reserve to keep rates steady at its rate-setting meeting next week and wait on U.S. inflation data, tracking overnight gains in the United States.

The won was trading at 1,297.85 against the dollar at around 9:15 a.m, falling below the 1,300 mark for the first time since April 14.

The benchmark Kospi rose 10.05 points, or 0.38 percent, to 2,625.46 in the first 15 minutes of trading.

Overnight, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.03 percent to 33,573.28, and the Nasdaq Composite gained 0.36 percent to 13,276.42.

U.S. consumer prices for May, set to be released next week, are expected to cool down compared to a month earlier, and the Fed is expected to hold rates steady at its meeting on June 13 and 14, given recent economic data and dovish comments from Fed officials, analysts said.

In Seoul, auto, airline and energy stocks led gains.

Hyundai Motor rose 0.3 percent, national flag carrier Korean Air climbed 1.4 percent, chemical firm LG Chem jumped 3 percent, and refiner SK Innovation was up 1.9 percent.

Samsung Electronics fell 0.8 percent, KG Mobility, formerly SsangYong Motor, declined 0.6 percent, and Hanwha Ocean, formerly Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering, was down 0.2 percent.

BY SOHN DONG-JOO, YONHAP [sohn.dongjoo@joongang.co.kr]