South Korean equities experienced a significant surge on Thursday, with the benchmark index climbing over 8 percent. This robust performance was primarily driven by substantial gains in the technology sector, fueled by positive developments including Samsung Electronics successfully averting a strike. Investor confidence received a further boost from Nvidia’s impressive earnings report and an optimistic outlook for its burgeoning robotics business. Concurrently, the South Korean won strengthened against the US dollar, reflecting broader market optimism.
The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) closed up 606.64 points, or 8.42 percent, reaching 7,815.59. Throughout the trading day, the KOSPI even touched an intraday high of 7,819.23, underscoring the strong buying momentum.
The market commenced trading with a sharp upward trajectory, mirroring the overnight gains observed on Wall Street. This initial momentum was supported by a decline in crude oil prices, which followed reports indicating that US President Donald Trump announced Washington was nearing a significant deal with Iran, aiming to resolve conflicts in the Middle East.
As the bullish trend continued and stocks extended their gains, program trading on the KOSPI was temporarily halted. A five-minute suspension was triggered around 9:23 a.m. when KOSPI 200 futures maintained a rise of over 5 percent for more than a minute, signifying intense market activity.
Shares of prominent chipmakers and robotics-related companies were particularly strong performers. This sectorial surge was directly linked to US chip giant Nvidia’s better-than-expected financial results. Furthermore, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang’s strategic emphasis on “physical artificial intelligence” and “robotics” as critical future growth avenues significantly energized investor interest in these innovative segments.
