Seoul: Seoul shares surged more than 2 percent Tuesday to close at a fresh record high above the 5,900-point mark, driven by strong gains in technology shares. The Korean won fell against the U.S. dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) advanced 123.55 points, or 2.11 percent, to finish at an all-time high of 5,969.64.
According to Yonhap News Agency, the index has extended its upward momentum in recent weeks, surpassing the 5,000-point mark for the first time on January 27 and crossing 5,500 on February 12. It moved above 5,800 on the previous Friday. Trading volume was heavy at 1.58 billion shares worth 30.73 trillion won (US$21.3 billion), with decliners outnumbering gainers 465 to 407.
Institutions purchased a net 2.37 trillion won worth of stocks, offsetting net sales of 199.16 billion won by foreign investors and 2.28 trillion won by retail investors. This rally occurred despite overnight losses on Wall Street, where the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 1.66 percent and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite declined 1.13 percent.
In Seoul, investors focused on major chip stocks ahead of an earnings report from U.S. chipmaker Nvidia later this week, while remaining cautious over U.S. President Donald Trump's push to impose new tariffs after the Supreme Court struck down his original duties. Trump signed an executive order authorizing new 10 percent global tariffs that took effect Tuesday, with threats to raise it to 15 percent, though no formal order has been issued.
An analyst at IBK Securities Co. noted that even if the global tariffs are raised to 15 percent, there will be no major impact on the local stock market because current U.S. tariffs on Korean imports already stand at 15 percent. Technology and automobile stocks led the gains, with Samsung Electronics and SK hynix seeing significant increases.
Market bellwether Samsung Electronics jumped 3.63 percent to 200,000 won, while chip giant SK hynix surged 5.68 percent to a record high of 1,005,000 won. Top automaker Hyundai Motor rose 0.19 percent to 524,000 won, and leading battery maker LG Energy Solution gained 4.17 percent to 412,500 won. Among decliners, shipbuilder Hanwha Ocean fell 2.79 percent to 143,100 won, and Lotte Shopping declined 1.67 percent to 111,700 won.
The Korean won was quoted at 1,442.50 won against the U.S. dollar at 3:30 p.m., down 2.5 won from the previous session.