Kospi closes higher for third straight day on Nvidia Q2 earnings report

Shares closed over 1 percent higher on Thursday, boosted by Nvidia’s better-than-expected earnings results, despite a back-to-back rate hike by the Bank of Korea (BOK).

After opening over 2 percent higher, the benchmark Kospi closed up 104.16 points, or 1.53 percent, at 6,912.37.

Trade volume was light at 265.5 million shares worth 22.5 trillion won ($16.3 billion). Losers outnumbered winners 537 to 316.

Retail investors were net sellers, off-loading 1.91 trillion won. Foreigners and institutional investors snatched up a combined net 318.2 billion won.

Investor sentiment remained solid as the U.S. chip giant’s strong second quarter earnings eased woes regarding the AI boom and continued demand for semiconductors.

But the index trimmed earlier gains following the BOK’s rate hike decision, which raised the country’s base rate by a quarter percentage point to 3 percent.

BOK Gov. Shin Hyun-song described the rate hike as a “pre-emptive, proactive and advanced” response to bring inflation and other financial risks under control, but said that the Korean economy maintains solid growth, driven by strong semiconductor exports.

“The market was a seesaw game between the earnings release from Nvidia and the BOK’s monetary policy board meeting,” Lee Kyoung-min, an analyst from Daishin Securities, said.

Market heavyweights closed mixed.

Samsung Electronics added 1.72 percent to 266,000 won, and SK hynix rose 2.49 percent to 1,730,000 won.

Battery shares gained ground on energy storage system, or ESS, momentum.

LG Energy Solution jumped 5.56 percent to 370,500 won, and Posco Future M vaulted 9.07 percent to 184,000 won.

Bio shares, in contrast, closed lower on profit-taking. Celltrion dipped 1.09 percent to 191,300 won, and SK Biopharmaceuticals shed 3.93 percent to 88,000 won.

The won strengthened 3.9 won from the previous session to close at 1,380.9 against the dollar as of 3:30 p.m. on Thursday.

Yonhap