Seoul shares ended spiked nearly 1.5 percent Friday, extending their winning streak to a fourth day, as easing US inflation helped assuage rate hike fears. The South Korean won sharply rose against the US dollar.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index climbed 37.07 points, or 1.43 percent, to finish at 2,628.30.

Trading volume was moderate at 561.21 million shares worth 14.01 trillion won ($11.06 billion), with winners outpacing losers 442 to 428.

Institutions and foreigners bought a net 775 billion won and 587 billion won worth of stocks, respectively, while retail investors offloaded a net 1.3 trillion won worth of shares.

The US producer price index, another key inflation reading, came in weaker than anticipated in June. The report came a day after June's consumer price index showed US inflation slowed to a two-year low.

Overnight, the Dow Jones Industrial Average inched up 0.14 percent, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite climbed 1.58 percent. The S&P 500 rose 0.85 percent.

In Seoul, most large-cap stocks finished higher.

Market behemoth Samsung Electronics gained 2.09 percent to finish at 73,400 won, and No. 2 chipmaker SK hynix jumped 3.42 percent to 118,000 won.

Top carmaker Hyundai Motor advanced 2.46 percent to 208,500 won, and its sister company Kia climbed 1.37 percent to 88,700 won. Major chemical company LG Chem went up 1.49 percent to 680,000 won.

Leading battery maker LG Energy Solution was flat at 542,000 won.

Among decliners, Samsung Biologics shed 0.53 percent to 744,000 won, and energy company SK Innovation went down 1.03 percent to 163,700 won.

The local currency closed at 1,265.8 won against the US dollar, up 8.2 won from the previous session's close. (Yonhap)