South Korean stocks were slightly up late Friday morning, buoyed by advances in technology shares. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) added 5.09 points, or 0.19 percent, to 2,688.74 as of 11:20 a.m. The index had opened sharply higher, tracking overnight gains on Wall Street helped by dovish remarks from U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell suggesting there will unlikely be a rate hike in the near future. The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed 0.85 percent higher Thursday (U.S. time), with the Nasdaq spiking 1.51 percent. In Seoul, large caps traded mixed. Market kingpin and chipmaking giant Samsung Electronics gained 0.38 percent, with its local rival SK hynix adding 0.75 percent, but top chemicals producer LG Chem dipped 1.11 percent, while leading automaker Hyundai Motor dropped 1.0 percent. Top portal operator Naver surged 2.81 percent after reporting better-than-expected first quarter earnings. Leading battery maker LG Energy Solution retreated 0.13 percent, but its loca l rival Samsung SDS soared 1.01 percent. The local currency was trading at 1,364.15 won against the U.S. dollar, up 11.75 won from the previous session's close. Source: Yonhap News Agency