South Korean stocks opened higher Friday as investors purchased techs and financials despite overnight losses on Wall Street.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index rose 20.16 points, or 0.77 percent, to 2,648.78 in the first 15 minutes of trading.

Overnight, Wall Street lost ground as Meta and other big tech companies retreated as the US economy expanded at a sharply slower-than-expected pace in the first quarter. The S&P 500 dropped 0.5 percent, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq shed 0.6 percent, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 1 percent.

In Seoul, tech shares led the overall gains, with market heavyweight Samsung Electronics rising 1.78 percent and chip rival SK hynix adding 2.45 percent.

Finance stocks also advanced, with KB Financial surging 7.22 percent and Shinhan Financial jumping 3.79 percent.

In contrast, battery and auto shares traded lower. Leading battery company LG Energy Solution lost 0.94 percent, and top automaker Hyundai Motor fell 1.6 percent.

The local currency was trading at 1,374.25 won against the greenback, down 0.75 won from the previous session's close. (Yonhap)