* KOSPI rises, foreigners net buyers

* Korean won strengthens against dollar

* South Korea benchmark bond yield rises

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SEOUL, Dec 27 (Reuters) - Round-up of South Korean financial markets: ** South Korean shares rose on Wednesday, following gains on Wall Street as traders continued to bet that the U.S. Federal Reserve is likely to cut interest rates next year. The won strengthened, while the benchmark bond yield rose. ** The benchmark KOSPI closed up 10.91 points, or 0.42%, at 2,613.50. ** U.S. stocks extended their rally on Tuesday, kicking off the final week of 2023 with expectations that the Fed will begin cutting key policy rates as early as March. ** The deadline for rights to dividend payouts ended on Tuesday in South Korea. ** South Korea's exports likely rose for a third straight month in December albeit at a slower pace as stronger electronics demand is seen supporting the country's economic recovery into the new year, a Reuters poll showed on Wednesday. ** Among index heavyweights, chipmaker Samsung Electronics rose 1.83% and peer SK Hynix lost 0.35%, while battery maker LG Energy Solution climbed 1.32%. ** Hyundai Motor shed 0.15% and sister automaker Kia Corp gained 0.73%, while search engine Naver and instant messenger Kakao were up 3.48% and 1.91%, respectively. ** Of the total 939 traded issues, 302 shares advanced, while 593 declined. ** Foreigners were net buyers of shares worth 231.0 billion won on the main board on Wednesday. ** The won ended onshore trade at 1,294.2 per dollar, 0.02% higher than its previous close at 1,294.5.

** In offshore trading, the won was quoted at 1,294.1 per dollar, down 0.0% on the day, while in non-deliverable forward trading its one-month contract was quoted at 1,291.6.

** The most liquid three-year Korean treasury bond yield rose by 1 basis point to 3.226%, while the benchmark 10-year yield rose by 0.7 basis points to 3.268%. (Reporting by Cynthia Kim; Editing by Sohini Goswami)