SEOUL: South Korean stocks traded slightly higher late Tuesday morning, led by gains in auto shares.
The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) added 3.01 points to 2,033.28 as of 11:20 a.m.
Auto shares traded bullish. Top automaker Hyundai Motor gained 1.24 percent, and its sister company Kia Motors increased 1.51 percent.
Hyundai Securities sank 4.23 percent after Japanese private equity firm Orix gave up its bid to buy the indebted brokerage house after a drawn-out negotiation process.
Coway, a water purifier company, jumped 4.38 percent after local media reported that CJ Group formed a consortium with Chinese appliance maker Haier Electronics Group to buy a 30.9 percent stake in the company, a deal estimated at up to 3 trillion won (US$2.6 billion).
The local currency was changing hands at 1,129.4 won against the greenback as of 11:20 a.m., down 8.4 won from Monday’s close.
