Seoul shares open higher despite US losses amid Middle East pessimism

The KOSPI index is displayed at a dealing room of Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul, Wednesday. Yonhap

Korean shares opened higher Wednesday, led by gains in major technology stocks, despite overnight losses on Wall Street as optimism over a potential U.S.-Iran peace deal faded.

After opening 1.47 percent higher, the benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) traded up 149.19 points, or 2.35 percent, at 6,494.71 as of 9:15 a.m.

Investors became more pessimistic about the prospects for a deal that could bring stability to the Middle East after the newly appointed secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council said the Strait of Hormuz will remain closed as long as Washington does not change its behavior and accept Tehran's conditions for ending the war.

Overnight, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.34 percent, while the S&P 500 declined 0.32 percent to 7,728.2. The Nasdaq composite shed 0.60 percent.

In Seoul, most large-cap shares traded higher.

Market bellwether Samsung Electronics went up 4.18 percent, while its chipmaking rival SK hynix increased 3.02 percent.

SK Square, the parent of SK hynix, shot up 6.35 percent and Samsung Electro-Mechanics, an electronics component affiliate of Samsung Electronics, increased 3.88 percent.

The Korean won was trading at 1,414.2 won against the U.S. dollar as of 9:15 a.m., down 1.2 won from the end of stock trading the previous day.