Key facts
- South Korean shares edged up on Tuesday, extending a winning streak to a third session.
- The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) gained 10.19 points, or 0.15 percent, to 7,017.91.
- The index had opened more than 2 percent higher, reaching as high as 7,171.44.
- Investors scooped up major semiconductor stocks, tracking an overnight rally on Wall Street amid renewed optimism over artificial intelligence.
- Individual and institutional investors sold tech heavyweights to lock in profits, causing the KOSPI to pare its earlier gains.
- Samsung Electronics rose 1.92 percent, and SK hynix gained 2.41 percent.
South Korean shares edged up on Tuesday, extending their winning streak to a third session as investors bought major semiconductor stocks, following a rally on Wall Street driven by renewed optimism over artificial intelligence (AI).
The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) gained 10.19 points, or 0.15 percent, to close at 7,017.91. The index had opened more than 2 percent higher, reaching an intraday high of 7,171.44.
However, the KOSPI pared its earlier gains as individual and institutional investors sold tech heavyweights to lock in profits. This profit-taking followed a strong opening and a record close for the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite on Monday (local time).
On Monday, the Nasdaq Composite rose 2.3 percent, the S&P 500 gained 1.5 percent, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.7 percent. Investor sentiment was boosted by a broad rally in AI-related stocks, falling oil prices, and softening U.S. Treasury yields.
Among major stocks, Samsung Electronics rose 1.92 percent, and chip giant SK hynix gained 2.41 percent.