South Korean shares track Wall Street higher; weak exports weigh

Round-up of South Korean financial markets:

** South Korean shares rose on Thursday, tracking overnight Wall Street gains after U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell's remarks, but gains were capped by domestic downbeat trade data. The Korean won jumped, while the benchmark bond yield fell.

** The benchmark KOSPI KOSPI rose 18.12 points, or 0.73%, to 2,490.65 as of 0107 GMT, after rising as much as 1.17% to its highest since Aug. 19.

** Overnight, Wall Street rallied after Powell's remarks that it was time to slow the pace of upcoming interest rate hikes.

** "However, the local stocks' gains were comparably limited as South Korea's exports, directly related to corporate earnings, posted a decline for a second month," said Choi Yoo-june, an analyst at Shinhan Securities.

** The country's exports in November suffered their worst annual drop in 2-1/2 years, hurt by cooling global demand in major markets led by China and a downturn in the semiconductor industry.

** Among heavyweights, technology giant Samsung Electronics 005930 rose 1.29% and peer SK Hynix 000660 gained 1.88%, but battery maker LG Energy Solution 373220 declined 0.34%.

** Platform stocks jumped. Naver 035420 rose 2.94% and Kakao 035720 gained 3.90%, with its financial service affiliates Kakaobank 323410 and Kakaopay 377300 up 6.79% and 4.91% each.

** Foreigners were net buyers of shares worth 100.7 billion won ($77.53 million).

** The won was quoted 1.57% higher at 1,298.4 per dollar on the onshore settlement platform USDKRW, after hitting a more than three month high of 1,294.6.

** In money and debt markets, December futures on three-year treasury bonds (KTBc1) rose 0.27 point to 103.92.

** The most liquid three-year Korean treasury bond yield fell by 5.3 basis points to 3.613%, while the benchmark 10-year yield fell by 2.6 basis points to 3.628%.

($1 = 1,298.8400 won)