South Korean shares inched up on Friday as chipmakers rose on upbeat outlook for the industry, but caution ahead of U.S. payrolls capped gains. The won rose nearly 1% against the dollar, while the benchmark bond yield fell.

Falling semiconductor prices and the U.S.-China trade war have bitten into profits at Samsung Electronics, but analysts expect earnings growth next year as chip prices turn around. Shares of Samsung Elec and SK Hynix gained 1.4% and 1.8%, respectively. [nL3N26L0W7]

Optimism over chipmakers' third-quarter profits lifted their stocks and supported the broader markets, said Park Seok-hyun, an analyst at KTB Investment & Securities. The focus is on U.S. job report after weak U.S. manufacturing data, he added.

As of 0242 GMT, the KOSPI rose 2.79 points, or 0.14%, to 2,034.70.

Shares of Ram Technology soared nearly 30% to hit the intraday price limit on media reports that the company has supplied liquid hydrogen fluoride to SK Hynix. [nL3N26P07C]

Foreigners were net sellers of 48.6 billion won ($40.67 million) worth of shares on the main board.

The won was quoted at 1,195.7 per dollar on the onshore settlement platform , 0.86% higher than its previous close at 1,206.0.

In offshore trading, the won was quoted at 1,195.4 per U.S. dollar, up 0.5% from the previous day, while in non-deliverable forward trading its one-month contract was quoted at 1,194.6 per dollar.

MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan <.MIAPJ0000PUS> was up 0.33%, after U.S. stocks climbed [MKTS/GLOB]. Japanese stocks <.N225> fell 0.18%.

The KOSPI has fallen 0.32% so far this year, but gained 4.7% in the previous 30 trading sessions.

The trading volume during the session in the KOSPI index was 188.40 million shares and, of the total traded issues of 887, the number of advancing shares was 246.

The won has lost 6.7% against the U.S dollar so far this year.

In money and debt markets, December futures on three-year treasury bonds rose 0.18 points to 110.99.

The most liquid 3-year Korean treasury bond yield fell by 5.6 basis points to 1.248%, while the benchmark 10-year yield fell by 6.6 basis points to 1.431%.

(Reporting by Hayoung Choi; editing by Uttaresh.V)