Seoul shares up 0.45 pct in late-morning trade

South Korean stocks traded 0.45 percent higher late Friday morning led by gains in large-cap shares. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) had added 11.88 points to 2,676.15 as of 11:20 a.m. SK hynix, the second-biggest share in terms of market capitalization, led the increase, jumping 3.71 percent on the better-than-expected earnings report of its customer Nvidia. Top oil refinery SK Innovation climbed 0.16 percent and Samsung Fire and Marine Insurance rose 3.49 percent. Leading steelmaker POSCO Holdings rose 0.34 percent and pharmaceutical blue-chip Celltrion gained 3.17 percent. But top-cap Samsung Electronics stayed unchanged and No. 3 LG Energy Solution retreated 0.24 percent. The local currency was trading at 1,328.75 won against the U.S. dollar, down 0.05 won from the previous session's close.