Seoul:South Korean stocks soared over 4 percent on Tuesday, breaking a three-day losing streak, as technology shares saw significant gains and oil prices dropped amid hopes for a potential resolution to the conflict in the Middle East.
According to Yonhap News Agency, the benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) climbed 220.28 points, or 4.39 percent, closing at 5,239.13 after reaching an intraday high of 5,300.92. The Korea Exchange implemented a buy-side sidecar for the main bourse shortly after opening, temporarily halting program trading for KOSPI-listed shares for five minutes due to an initial 4.55 percent rise.
Trading activity was relatively light, with a volume of 241 million shares valued at 16.2 trillion won (approximately US$12.1 billion). The market saw 714 winners compared to 174 losers. Foreign investors became net buyers, acquiring shares worth a net 365.9 billion won, while institutions purchased a net 489 billion won. Individual investors, however, sold a net 1.3 trillion won worth of shares.
U.S. President Donald Trump's recent comments about not being ready to resume military strikes against Iran contributed to the decline in crude oil prices. On Wall Street, technology shares led gains, with the PHLX chip index rising 6.85 percent, although Nvidia fell 4.2 percent amid the announcement of an internal investigation into its CEO.
The positive momentum in U.S. semiconductor stocks benefitted South Korean companies involved in the semiconductor value chain. Samsung Electronics saw a 4.74 percent increase to 198,000 won, while SK hynix surged 6.69 percent to 1.2 million won. Other notable gains included Samsung Electro-Mechanics, up 4.63 percent, and SK Square, up 5.26 percent.
Airline stocks also benefited from lower oil prices, with Korean Air and Asiana Airlines experiencing substantial increases of 11.51 percent and 11.68 percent, respectively. Hanwha Aerospace and LG Energy Solution also posted gains, rising 3.13 percent and 3.93 percent.
The Korean won appreciated against the U.S. dollar, closing at 1,337.5 won, an increase of 9.6 won from the previous session's close.