South Korean stocks advanced Moon March 12 on rising hope for more stimulus measures from China and a robust retail sales report from the United States, analysts said. The local currency rose against the greenback.

The benchmark KOSPI gained 19.08 points, or 0.89 percent, to finish at 2,157.18, marking the biggest daily gain since Feb. 20.

Trading volume was moderate at 345.7 million shares worth 4.11 trillion won ($3.65 billion), with gainers far outnumbering losers 590 to 241.

Institutions scooped up a net 75.86 billion won worth of local stocks to support the index. Foreigners bought a net 930 million won, while retail investors sold a net 22.17 billion won.

The local currency closed at 1,129.80 won against the US dollar, up 3.90 won from the previous session.

By Ram Garikipati and newswires (ram@heraldcorp.com)