SEOUL, KOREA - MOBILE telephones have topped the list of gifts sought by South Korean children, a survey said on Sunday.

The poll, conducted by the Korean-language Yahoo web site on 16,661 youngsters nationwide, said 37 per cent picked cell phones as the best gift.

Nintendo video game consoles ranked second on the list with 30 per cent approval, followed by MP3 players with nine per cent support.

South Korea is home to such global cell phone manufacturers as Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics, with over 80 per cent of its 49 million people using the mobile handsets.

The survey results were issued on the eve of Children's Day, which South Korea has observed since 1923, when parents usually buy gifts for their children. -- AFP