S. Korean Shares, Currency Rise on Wall Street Rally

South Korean stocks rose sharply Wednesday morning as investors took a cue from overnight gains on Wall Street.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) opened at 1,184.92, up 2.74 percent from Tuesday's close, and regained the 1,200-point mark at 9:48 a.m. The index rose further to 1,200.57, up 4.09 percent, as of 10 a.m.

U.S. stocks closed jumped Tuesday as investor sentiment got a boost in anticipation of the post-election year-end rally. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 305.45, or 3.28 percent, to 9,625.28 and the Nasdaq Composite Index added 53.79 points, or 3.12 percent, to 1,780.12.

Foreign investors turned to a net buying in three days with 13.1 billion won. Institutions also posted a net buying of 29.9 billion won, while individuals recorded a net selling of 26.6 billion won.

Most industries rose with construction, banks, machinery, securities and insurance jumping more than 5 percent.

Tech bellwether Samsung Electronics rose 2.14 percent and top steel maker POSCO was up 3.03 percent

The government's recent relaxation on apartment reconstruction pushed up construction issues. Daewoo Engineering and Construction surged 11 percent.

Meanwhile, the local currency was trading at 1,261.90 won to the U.S. dollar as of 9:56 a.m., up 23.1 won from Tuesday's close.