Seoul shares up 4 pct on U.S. gains

SEOUL, Oct. 29 (Yonhap) -- South Korean stocks traded 4 percent higher late
Wednesday morning as investor sentiment was comforted by sharp gains on Wall
Street during the previous session, analysts said.
The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) climbed 39.94 points, or
4 percent, to 1,039.1 as of 11:20 a.m.
"Upward movement on Wall Street seems to be affecting most Asian stocks, which
are also benefiting from an expected rate cut by the U.S. Federal Reserve on
Wednesday," said Lim Dong-min, an analyst at Dongbu Securities.
Wall Street marked its second-best percentage-based performance ever on Monday on
hopes that central banks worldwide will cut rates even further. The Dow Jones
industrial average climbed 10.88 percent, and the tech-dominated Nasdaq composite
index also advanced 9.53 percent.
Stocks were buoyed across the board, with retail and steel sectors leading the
gains. Lenders and other financials, however, lost ground.
The local currency was trading at 1,398.95 won to the U.S. dollar as of 11:20
a.m., surging 68.85 won from Tuesday's close, as investors dumped the greenback
on expectations that a likely U.S. rate cut would depreciate the dollar against
other currencies.