SEOUL, July 31 (Yonhap) -- South Korean stocks opened sharply higher Friday, driven by gains in semiconductor shares stemming from an overnight rally in U.S. tech giants backed by a strong earnings report from U.S. tech giant Microsoft.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) added 64.23 points, or 1.15 percent, to 5,657.79 at the opening bell.

Overnight, Wall Street closed higher as Microsoft jumped a record 15 percent after exceeding expectations for current-quarter sales and cloud growth in its second-quarter report, easing fears about massive spending on artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure.

The S&P 500 climbed 1.66 percent and the Nasdaq gained 2.78 percent, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1.19 percent. The PHLX chip index, a gauge of U.S. semiconductor giants, surged 8.2 percent.

brk@yna.co.kr

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