Seoul Stocks Edge Higher as Tech Gains Offset Oil Price Concerns

South Korean stocks opened modestly higher on Thursday, with gains in technology companies narrowly outweighing investor concerns over elevated oil prices and their potential inflationary impact.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index rose 4.78 points, or 0.07 percent, to 6,808.68 at the opening bell. The subdued increase reflected a market balancing strong momentum in the technology sector against a less favorable global backdrop.

Technology shares received support after Samsung Electronics released a preliminary estimate showing operating profit of 107 trillion won, equivalent to about $79.8 billion, for the third quarter. The estimate exceeded market forecasts by 1.6 percent, giving investors a fresh reason to favor technology stocks at the start of trading.

Samsung’s estimate also provided a domestic focal point for the session. Because the company carries substantial weight in South Korea’s equity market, expectations for its earnings can have an outsized effect on the direction of the main index. The opening gain nevertheless remained small, suggesting that investors were still weighing the earnings signal against broader risks.

Oil prices were among those risks. Persistently high energy costs can add to inflation pressure by raising expenses for transportation, manufacturing and households. For an economy that imports much of its energy, a sustained rise in oil prices may also affect corporate margins and the wider outlook for consumer prices.

The overnight performance of major U.S. stock indexes offered limited support. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.66 percent, while the technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite declined 0.22 percent. Those losses left Seoul investors without a strong positive cue from Wall Street even as local technology shares moved higher.

The combination produced a cautious opening rather than a broad rally. Investors appeared to reward the better-than-expected profit estimate from Samsung while remaining alert to the possibility that costly oil could reinforce inflation worries.

Attention during the rest of Thursday’s session was expected to remain on whether early technology gains could broaden across the market or whether energy-price concerns and weak overnight sentiment would restrain the index. The opening move showed that company-level earnings strength was, at least initially, enough to keep the benchmark in positive territory.