South Korean shares opened higher Tuesday, as optimism for new coronavirus vaccines fueled hopes of an economic rebound in the financial markets.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 14.03 points, or 0.60 percent, to 2,343.86 in the first 15 minutes of trading.

Investor sentiment improved after US bio firm Moderna Inc. said it is close to making a deal on supplying about 80 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines to the European Union.

The announcement fueled hopes for a quick economic rebound, pulling up key stock indices on Wall Street.

The S&P 500 closed up 1 percent at a record high 3,431.28 points on Monday (New York time), with the Dow Jones Industrial Average adding 1.35 percent. The tech-laden Nasdaq advanced 0.6 percent.

Spreading COVID-10 outbreaks in South Korea, however, remained a risk for the markets.

Large caps traded mixed in Seoul.

Market bellwether Samsung Electronics inched up 0.18 percent, and No. 2 chipmaker SK hynix edged up 0.13 percent.

Top pharmaceutical firm Samsung BioLogics lost 1.22 percent, while leading chemical maker LG Chem advanced 1.14 percent.

Hyundai Motor, the country's largest automaker, jumped 4.92 percent, while top steelmaker POSCO shed 0.25 percent.

Internet portal giant Naver stayed flat, and its rival Kakao gained 0.13 percent.

The local currency was trading at 1188.25 won against the US dollar, up 0.85 won from the previous session's close. (Yonhap)