South korea: South Korea's bourse operator on Wednesday activated a buy-side sidecar for the benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) after the index surged, driven by gains in technology stocks.
According to Yonhap News Agency, program trading for the KOSPI-listed shares was suspended for five minutes at 9:25 a.m., shortly after the market opened. This measure was taken by the Korea Exchange (KRX) to stabilize the market following the significant rise.
After opening 3.85 percent higher, the KOSPI climbed 4.53 percent by 9:27 a.m. The surge was attributed to optimism regarding a potential agreement between the United States and Iran over the Strait of Hormuz and reduced concerns over artificial intelligence (AI) investment.
A buy-side sidecar is triggered when the KOSPI 200 Futures index experiences a rise of 5 percent or more for at least one minute, prompting a temporary halt in program trading to maintain market stability.