Kospi opens tad higher as Fed holds rates ahead of Samsung earnings report

Stocks opened slightly higher Thursday, buoyed by the Federal Reserve's decision to hold interest rates steady and expectations for strong third quarter earnings from Samsung Electronics amid robust memory chip demand.

The Kospi rose 4.78 points, or 0.08 percent, to 6,017.22 at the opening bell, extending its rally after surging more than 6 percent in the previous session.

Overnight, U.S. stocks gained after the Federal Open Market Committee voted 10-2 to keep its benchmark interest rate unchanged at 3.75 to 4 percent.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.19 percent, the S&P 500 added 0.28 percent, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq gained 0.27 percent.

In the earnings guidance earlier this month, Samsung Electronics forecast third quarter sales of 195 trillion won ($145 billion) and operating profit of 107.4 trillion won, driven by strong demand for memory chips used in AI applications.

Yonhap