[THE INVESTOR] South Korean stocks opened higher on Sept. 22, on the US Federal Reserve’s decision to keep its key rate unchanged.

The benchmark KOSPI earned 13.87 points, or 0.68 percent, to 2,049.86 in the first 15 minutes of trading.

The index tracked overnight gains on Wall Street. The Dow Jones industrial average rose 0.90 percent, with the tech-heavy NASDAQ composite index climbing 1.03 percent.

The Fed on Sept. 21 maintained its target range for the federal funds rate unchanged at 0.25 percent to 0.5 percent.

Large-cap stocks climbed across the board.

Samsung Electronics gained 0.63 percent, Naver, the top internet portal operator, was up 0.47 percent and top automaker Hyundai Motor gained 0.36 percent.

The local currency was trading at 1,101.65 won against the US dollar, up 18.45 won from the previous session’s close.

(theinvestor@heraldcorp.com)