Seoul shares opened higher Wednesday, tracking overnight gains on Wall Street, amid hopes that the US Federal Reserve may pause its tightening campaign.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index rose 20.93 points, or 0.82 percent, to 2,573.09 in the first 15 minutes of trading.

Overnight, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.9 percent and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite climbed 1.7 percent.

Latest US economic data, including decreased job openings and weakened consumer confidence, has raised hopes for a pause in rate hikes, raising chances that the Fed will begin to cut rates in the first half of 2024, analysts said.

The US central bank is widely expected to keep rates unchanged in September.

In Seoul, most large-cap stocks advanced.

Market bellwether Samsung Electronics Co. rose 0.9 percent, No. 2 chipmaker SK hynix Inc. jumped 2.8 percent, leading battery maker LG Energy Solution gained 0.7 percent, and top carmaker Hyundai Motor Co. was up 0.6 percent.

Among decliners, state-run Korea Gas Corp. fell 0.4 percent, Hankook Tire & Technology Co. declined 0.5 percent, the country's sole aircraft manufacturer Korea Aerospace Industries Co. shed 0.2 percent, and leading shipping firm HMM was down 1.5 percent.

The local currency was trading at 1,319.60 won against the US dollar at 9:15 a.m., up 2.3 won from the previous session's close. (Yonhap)