Seoul: South Korea's benchmark stock index, the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI), has closed the year with an impressive performance, posting a return of more than 70 percent higher compared to the beginning of the year. This marks the highest annual growth since the dot-com bubble, as revealed by newly released data.
According to Yonhap News Agency, KOSPI ended the year at 4,214.17, up 75.7 percent from its starting point of 2,398.94 on January 2. The last time the index experienced such growth was in 1999, when it surged 83 percent before the dot-com bubble burst in 2000.
Analysts are optimistic about the KOSPI's trajectory in 2026, attributing the continued bull run to abundant global liquidity and government measures aimed at boosting the stock market. However, they caution that challenges remain, particularly concerning the profitability of investments related to artificial intelligence and uncertainties surrounding the Federal Reserve's policy direction in the United States.
Kim Jong-min, an analyst at Samsung Securities, noted that the Federal Reserve's monetary easing cycle might conclude in the early half of next year, potentially leading to increased market volatility in the latter half.
Projections from South Korea's 11 major brokerages suggest that KOSPI could fluctuate within a range of 3,500 to 5,500 next year. The most optimistic forecast comes from NH Investment and Securities, anticipating the index to reach between 4,000 and 5,500, while Hana Securities offers a more conservative outlook with a target range of 3,750 to 4,300.