Employees work at the dealing room of Hana Bank’s headquarters in Jung-gu, Seoul, on the 29th. The Kospi opened up 199.02 points (2.43%) at 8,384.31, while the won-dollar exchange rate started 7.3 won lower at 1,495.5 won. Yonhap News
South Korea’s benchmark KOSPI reclaimed the 8,400 level as shares of major chipmakers rallied across the board.
According to the Korea Exchange (KRX), the KOSPI opened 199.02 points, or 2.43%, higher at 8,384.31 on Wednesday. The index extended its gains immediately after the open, breaking past 8,400 and rising as high as 8,424.53 during the session.
The KOSPI crossed the 8,400 mark for the first time on the 27th of this month, hitting an all-time intraday high of 8,457.09, before closing at 8,185.29 on the 28th. The index had at one point fallen to 7,841.01 amid heavy profit-taking before rebounding.
The rebound appears to have been driven by gains led by semiconductor stocks, as expectations grew that the war in Iran is coming to an end. Overnight, all three major U.S. indexes set fresh record highs. In particular, U.S. server maker Dell Technologies posted an earnings surprise after the New York market close and surged in after-hours trading, which analysts said also boosted buying sentiment toward Korean chipmakers.
Samsung Electronics (005930.KS) was trading at 312,500 won as of 9:15 a.m., up 4.17% from the previous session. The stock rose as much as 6.5% during the session. At the same time, SK hynix (000660.KS) was up 2.88% at 2.355 million won. Other large-cap KOSPI names also advanced, including SK Square (up 1.37%), Samsung Electronics preferred shares (up 6.08%), Hyundai Motor (up 6.79%), and Samsung Electro-Mechanics (up 5.57%).
“May’s market rally was driven more by multiple expansion, or rising expectations, than by earnings growth, which is the backdrop for the heightened volatility,” Han Ji-young, an analyst at Kiwoom Securities, said. “Since this was a multiple-driven rally, investors should be mindful that the market may become more sensitive in the short term to macro variables such as interest rates or to profit-taking.”
