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Shares open 1 percent higher despite overnight Wall Street losses

Published: 22 Aug. 2025, 09:44 Updated: 22 Aug. 2025, 15:12

A screen in Hana Bank's trading room in central Seoul shows the Kospi opening on Aug. 22. [YONHAP]

Shares opened sharply higher Friday, rising more than 1 percent, despite overnight losses on Wall Street, as investors await remarks from U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell.

The Kospi rose 32.14 points, or 1.02 percent, to 3,173.88 in the first 15 minutes of trading.

Overnight, U.S. stocks declined ahead of Powell's speech at the annual Jackson Hole economic policy symposium Friday. The S&P 500 dipped 0.4 percent, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 0.34 percent. The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite also fell 0.34 percent.

In Seoul, most large-cap shares opened higher.

Chip giant Samsung Electronics went up 1.13 percent, and its rival SK hynix gained 1.12 percent after a five-day losing streak.

Defense giant Hanwha Aerospace increased 4.32 percent.

In contrast, leading battery maker LG Energy Solution inched down 0.54 percent, and top automaker Hyundai Motor edged down 0.23 percent.

The local currency was trading at 1,399.6 won against the greenback at 9:15 a.m., up 0.09 percent from the previous session's quote of 1,398.3 won.

Yonhap