Key Samsung shares open up after court dismisses arrest warrant for group leader

Shares of key Samsung Group [SAGR.UL] companies opened higher on Thursday, after a South Korean court rejected the special prosecutor's request for an arrest warrant for Samsung Group leader Jay Y. Lee.

Shares of Samsung Electronics Co Ltd <005930.KS> were up 2.5 percent while Samsung C&T Corp <028260.KS> shares were 4.1 percent higher as of 0003 GMT, outperforming a 0.7 percent rise for the broader market <.KS11>.

The Seoul Central District Court earlier on Thursday dismissed a warrant to arrest the 48-year-old Lee, who was named a suspect by the special prosecution as part of an investigation into a graft scandal that has led to the impeachment of President Park Geun-hye.

(Reporting by Se Young Lee; Editing by Himani Sarkar)