South Korean stocks rose late Friday morning as the Bank of Korea (BOK) cut its key rate for the first time in more than three years. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index had added 0.41 percent, or 10.61 points, to 2,609.77 as of 11:20 a.m. Investor sentiment was boosted as the BOK slashed its key benchmark interest rate by 25 basis points to 3.25 percent, marking the first reduction since August 2021. The BOK's decision came after the U.S. Federal Reserve made a big half percentage point rate cut last month. Tech behemoth Samsung Electronics rose 1.53 percent, while its chipmaking rival SK hynix increased 0.32 percent. Battery shares were also mixed, with industry leader LG Energy Solution down 1.75 percent and its smaller rival Samsung SDI up 2.03 percent. Bio and financial shares were strong. Samsung Biologics rose 2.81 percent and Celltrion climbed 0.98 percent. KB Financial and Meritz Financial advanced 1.11 percent and 2.1 percent, respectively. Trading firm Samsung C and T also gai ned 2.42 percent. The local currency was trading at 1,347.50 won against the U.S. dollar, up 2.7 won from the previous session. Source: Yonhap News Agency
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