Seoul Shares Start Higher on Wall Street Gains

South Korean stocks got off to a strong start Monday as investor sentiment got a big boost from the bull U.S. market Friday.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 13.25 points, or 0.76 percent, to 1,760.60 in the first 15 minutes of trading.

Blue chips reported gains across the board. Industry leader Samsung Electronics and No. 2 chipmakerr Hynix Semiconductor both rose and top carmaker Hyundai Motor gained about 1.9 percent.

U.S. stocks closed higher Friday as consumer price growth eased. The Dow Jones industrial average added 1.37 percent and the tech-dominated Nasdaq composite index rose 2.09 percent.

The tech-savvy Kosdaq market rose 4.36 points, or 0.70 percent, to 626.51 on Nasdaq's bullishness.

The Korean was trading at 1,043.35 won to the U.S. dollar, down 2.35 won from Friday's close.