South Korean stocks opened higher Monday following the previous session's sharp drop. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index gained 39.57 points, or 1.17 percent, to 3,425.62 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Market bellwether Samsung Electronics rose 0.96 percent, and chip giant SK hynix jumped 2.38 percent. Defense giant Hanwha Aerospace advanced 0.77 percent, and major pharmaceutical firm Samsung Biologics added 0.6 percent. The local currency was traded at 1,406.4 won against the greenback as of 9:15 a.m., up 5.4 won from the previous session.