Seoul shares open higher on bargain hunting

An electronic board at Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul shows the benchmark KOSPI and Kosdaq indices, Monday. Yonhap

Seoul shares opened higher Monday, led by technology stocks, as investors went bargain hunting after Wall Street's record-setting advance.

After opening 0.76 percent higher, the benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) further gained 101.15 points, or 1.62 percent, at 6,359.92 as of 9:15 a.m.

The KOSPI ended lower for a second straight session Friday, weighed down by foreign selling.

On Friday (local time), Wall Street advanced, following U.S. job reports. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.28 percent, while the S&P 500 added 0.62 percent to a fresh record. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index increased 1.3 percent.

In Seoul, technology stocks led the gains, with individual and institutional investors snapping up shares on bargain hunting.

Market bellwether Samsung Electronics rose 2.49 percent, and its chipmaking rival SK hynix climbed 3.94 percent.

The Korean won was trading at 1,412.1 won against the U.S. dollar as of 9:15 a.m., down 2.6 won from the previous session's close.