In early Thursday trading, the Kospi is up 2.7 percent. The gains are seen among them in heavyweights Samsung, which is up 4.2 percent, and SK Hynix, which is up 1.4 percent.
Japan's Nikkei 225 is up 0.8 percent, while the broader Topix is up 1.1 percent.
Markets in China and Hong Kong are still closed for the New Year.
