Seoul shares up 0.9 pct; Hyundai Motor,Mobis rally

* KOSPI trades firm after U.S data, share gains

* Hyundai Mobis, LG Chem gain after JV report

* Carmakers rise, and banks up on strong NIM data (Updates to mid-morning)

By Jungyoun Park

SEOUL, Aug 28 (Reuters) - Seoul shares rose on Friday with Hyundai Mobis (012330.KS) rallying on a report of a car battery agreement with LG Chem (051910.KS), while bankings issues gained after Bank of Korea's net interest margin data.

The Korea Composite Stock Price Index .KS11 (KOSPI) was up 0.90 percent at 1,613.65 points as of 0149 GMT.

"Market mood is positive, helped by U.S. economic data, but shares are definitely not making as big a rebound as expected, and this is probably due to the fact that shares have already risen a lot," said Lee Jin-woo, a market analyst at Mirae Asset Securities.

The U.S. economy shrank less than expected in the second quarter and fewer workers filed new claims for jobless benefits last week, a sign the world's largest economy was starting to heal. [ID:nN27303398]

Hyundai Mobis Co (012330.KS) jumped 5.9 percent and LG Chem Ltd (051910.KS) advanced 3.35 percent after a local media report the companies had agreed to set up a joint venture to produce electric vehicle batteries.

"If the news is indeed true, this is a great positive for Hyundai Mobis in particular, which has been trying to develop more environmentally friendly products," said Yoon Tae-shik, an analyst at Dongbu Securities.

Banking issues rose after central bank data released on Thursday showed interest margins at South Korean banks widened to a 10-year high of 2.61 percentage points in July from 2.51 percentage points in June as lenders raised lending rates while cutting deposit rates.

Hana Financial Group (086790.KS) rose 2.25 percent and Woori Finance Holdings (053000.KS) went up 1.79 percent.

Hyundai Steel (004020.KS) rose 1.78 percent after South Korea's second-largest steelmaker said on Friday that it would raise steel prices by up to 6.9 percent in its first increase in a year to reflect rising global steel and raw material prices. [ID:nSEO222171]

Carmakers gained following their latest set of losses, with Hyundai Motor (005380.KS) up 3.94 percent to 105,500 won, and Kia Motors (000270.KS) advancing 0.93 percent to 16,350 won.

"We believe it is premature to lock in gains on Hyundai Motor ... [its shares are] attractive, considering the bright growth outlook and the highest profit margin in the industry," Merrill Lynch said in a note on Friday.

Nomura raised its target price on Kia Motors, South Korea's No.2 carmaker, by 35 percent to 25,000 won from previous 18,500 won.

Samsung SDI (006400.KS) rose 2.51 percent to 143,000 won after JPMorgan lifted its target price on South Korea's battery and TV screen maker by 27 percent to 165,000 won from 130,000 won.

U.S. computer maker Dell's solid results, and gains overnight in key spot DRAM chip prices, boosted memory chip issues including Hynix Semiconductor (000660.KS).

Hynix Semiconductor, the world's No.2 memory chipmaker, rose 2.64 percent and Samsung Electronics (005930.KS), the world's No.1, went up 1.56 percent. (Reporting by Jungyoun Park; Editing by Chris Lewis)