An electronic board showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index at a dealing room of the Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul on Friday. (Yonhap)
An electronic board showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index at a dealing room of the Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul on Friday. (Yonhap)

South Korean stocks opened a tad higher Friday on rising hopes for progress in trade talks between the United States and Japan.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index rose 5.51 points, or 0.22 percent, to 2,475.92 in the first 15 minutes of trading.

Overnight, US stocks closed lower. The Nasdaq declined 0.13 percent, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 1.33 percent.

However, investors remained optimistic following US President Donald Trump's comments about "big progress" in the bilateral talks with Japan.

In Seoul, big caps led the uptick.

Market bellwether Samsung Electronics climbed 0.09 percent, and top carmaker Hyundai Motor added 0.28 percent.

Top biotech firm Samsung Biologics edged up 0.09 percent, and leading battery maker LG Energy Solution advanced 0.15 percent.

The local currency was trading at 1,419.9 won against the US dollar at 9:15 a.m., down 1.3 won from the previous session. (Yonhap)