The Kospi surged more than 3 percent Tuesday, reclaiming the 6,700 level on the back of strong gains in large-cap semiconductor stocks and heavy buying by institutional and foreign investors.
Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix led the advance, buoyed by robust semiconductor export data and expectations of an industry upturn, while easing geopolitical tensions in the Middle East further lifted investor sentiment. The Kosdaq also closed higher, supported by retail buying, as a buy-side sidecar was triggered during the session.
The Kospi closed at 6,747.95, up 231.68 points, or 3.56 percent, from the previous session, according to Korea Exchange. The index opened at 6,553.88, up 37.61 points, or 0.58 percent, from the prior close, and fluctuated in early trading before turning decisively higher.
At its intraday peak, the index climbed as high as 6,836.86. The sharp rally triggered a buy-side sidecar on the Kospi market at around 12:41 p.m. It was the 39th sidecar activation of the year and the 19th on the buy side.
Institutional investors led the advance. Institutions and foreign investors net purchased 1.39 trillion won ($938 million) and 308.4 billion won, respectively, while retail investors net sold 1.66 trillion won.
The Kospi's gains were driven primarily by heavyweight semiconductor stocks. Semiconductor exports have continued their record-breaking run, and a fresh interpretation of China's low-cost, high-performance AI models — which had recently weighed on the domestic market — also appeared to support the rally.
According to Korea Customs Service, exports from July 1 to 20 reached $54.9 billion on a customs-clearance basis (preliminary), a 52.3 percent increase from the same period last year. That was the largest figure ever recorded for the July 1–20 period. Semiconductor exports surged 180.6 percent to $22.1 billion, also setting an all-time high for the period.
Foreign media reports that Chinese AI startup Moonshot AI's "Kimi K3" model would require a substantial amount of memory chips for consumer use also served as a positive catalyst.
Samsung Electronics rose 6.15 percent and SK Hynix gained 4.08 percent, together driving the index higher. Institutions net purchased 695.2 billion won of SK Hynix and 471.8 billion won of Samsung Electronics on the day, making them the top two net-buy targets. Foreign investors also net bought 500.6 billion won of Samsung Electronics, their largest single-stock purchase. However, they net sold 439 billion won of SK Hynix.
Geopolitical tensions also eased somewhat after US media reported that a mediating country had proposed a 10-day truce to both sides, despite warnings from US President Donald Trump directed at Iran. West Texas Intermediate crude futures also pulled back to around $82 per barrel.
Among other top market-cap stocks, SK Square rose 6.46 percent, Samsung Electro-Mechanics gained 2.75 percent and Samsung Biologics advanced 3.72 percent. LG Energy Solution edged down 0.16 percent, Celltrion fell 0.58 percent and Hana Financial declined 0.60 percent.
The Kosdaq closed at 753.34, up 3.70 points, or 0.49 percent, from the previous session. The index opened at 750.07, up 0.43 points, or 0.06 percent, before dipping into negative territory, then recovered to close slightly higher on retail buying.
Retail investors net purchased 144.9 billion won on the Kosdaq, while foreign investors and institutions net sold 135 billion won and 14.4 billion won, respectively. Among top Kosdaq stocks by market cap, Alteogen rose 1.30 percent, Ecopro BM gained 1.73 percent and Ecopro advanced 2.31 percent, while PSK edged down 0.47 percent, HLB fell 0.49 percent and Samchundang Pharmaceutical dropped 29.79 percent.
The won edged down against the dollar, partly reflecting the effects of the benchmark interest rate hike. The won-dollar exchange rate stood at 1,473.4 won per dollar as of 3:30 p.m. in the Seoul foreign exchange market, down 5.0 won from the previous close.
th5@heraldcorp.com
