South Korean stocks closed higher on Wednesday, marking their third consecutive day of gains, driven by strong performances in the auto and financial sectors.
The Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) climbed 52.8 points, or 1 percent, to settle at 5,354.49. The Korean won strengthened against the US dollar.
Trading volume was moderate, with 747.2 million shares changing hands for a total value of 25.4 trillion won ($17.5 billion). Advancing stocks outnumbered declining ones by 541 to 337.
The KOSPI initially opened lower following weaker-than-anticipated US retail sales figures, which stoked concerns about a potential economic slowdown. Remarks from certain Federal Reserve officials also dampened expectations for near-term interest rate cuts.
However, the index subsequently rebounded, fueled by robust buying activity from foreign and institutional investors.
Foreign investors made net purchases of 847.3 billion won, while institutions bought a net 689.4 billion won worth of shares. This buying pressure offset a 1.7 trillion-won sell-off by retail investors.
“In the absence of significant catalysts, the KOSPI’s upward movement was supported by renewed momentum in the robotics sector and the strong showing of financial stocks, driven by anticipation of stock dividends,” commented Lee Jae-won, an analyst at Shinhan Securities.
Automotive giant Hyundai Motor saw a significant surge, rising 5.93 percent to 509,000 won, while its affiliate Kia also performed strongly, climbing 4.59 percent to 161,800 won. Both companies benefited from investor optimism surrounding the robotics industry.
LG Electronics also experienced a substantial increase, skyrocketing 22.98 percent, buoyed by positive assessments of the company’s robotics potential.
In the financial sector, KB Financial jumped 5.79 percent to 164,500 won, Shinhan Financial advanced 3.06 percent to 100,900 won, and Meritz Financial escalated 7.45 percent to 131,200 won.
Top-tier semiconductor stocks exhibited mixed performance. Samsung Electronics increased by 1.21 percent to 167,800 won, while chipmaker SK hynix declined by 1.83 percent to 860,000 won.
Major biopharmaceutical company Celltrion rose 5.27 percent to 239,500 won, while defense firm Hanwha Aerospace dipped 1.4 percent to 1.13 million won.
