[SEOUL] South Korean shares ended higher on Friday, gaining for a fourth straight week, helped by a slew of potentially successful coronavirus vaccines on the table and an upbeat outlook for November exports. The Korean won held steady, while the benchmark bond yield fell.

By 6.30am GMT, the benchmark Kospi rose 7.54 points or 0.29 per cent to 2,633.45. For the week, the index gained 3.13 per cent.

South Korea's exports likely bounced back in November and are expected to continue recovering for the time being, supported by strong chip sales and global demand, a Reuters poll showed on Friday.

British drugmaker AstraZeneca said on Monday its Covid-19 vaccine could be up to 90 per cent effective, adding to earlier promising developments from Pfizer and Moderna, although its efficacy is now facing more intense scrutiny.

US President Donald Trump said on Thursday that delivery of the coronavirus vaccine would begin next week and the week after.

Although the gains weren't big as US markets were closed, positive sentiment continued on foreign buying, and focus for remains on Korea's exports data and other US economic indicators next week, says Seo Sang-young, an analyst at Kiwoom Securities.

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Foreigners were net buyers of 76.8 billion won (S$92.9 million) worth of shares on the main board.

The won was quoted at 1,103.2 per US dollar on the onshore settlement platform, 0.13 per cent higher than its previous close at 1,104.6.

The Kospi has risen 19.83 per cent so far this year, and gained 11.2 per cent in the previous 30 trading sessions.

The trading volume during the session in the Kospi index was 1,180.77 million shares. Of the total traded issues of 905, the number of advancing shares was 487.

The won has gained 4.8 per cent against the dollar so far this year.

In money and debt markets, December futures on three-year treasury bonds rose 0.01 point to 111.61.

The most liquid three-year Korean treasury bond yield fell by 0.1 basis point to 0.980 per cent, while the benchmark 10-year yield fell by 2.3 basis points to 1.634 per cent.

REUTERS