Kospi surges over 8% on AI confidence, Iran-Israel ceasefire

Stocks soared by more than eight percent on Tuesday, sharply rebounding from the over eight percent plunge the previous session, to reclaim the 8,000-point threshold, as risk-on sentiment prevailed amid a ceasefire between Israel and Iran and confidence over the AI boom. The local currency sharply rose against the dollar.

The Kospi added 612.52 points, or 8.18 percent, to close at 8,096.93, after rising as high as 8,119.09.

The Kospi posted the highest-ever daily increase, breaching the previous high of 606.64 points set on May 21, when the index was rallying amid an extended bull run in semiconductor shares.

Trade volume was heavy at 442.4 million shares worth 46 trillion won ($30.4 billion), with winners outnumbering losers 771 to 133. Institutions purchased a net 2.5 trillion won, while foreigners and retail investors unloaded local shares worth 2 trillion won and 618 billion won.

With the Kospi's bullish start, the Korea Exchange activated a buy-side sidecar shortly after opening, halting program trading for five minutes.

Program trading on the Kosdaq was also suspended for five minutes from 9:28 a.m. after the bourse operator issued a buy-side sidecar for the secondary index.

The rebound came after the Kospi slid more than eight percent on Monday amid worries over AI profitability and a possible rate hike by the U.S. Federal Reserve following the release of hotter-than-expected U.S. jobs data for May. News that Iran and Israel were trading strikes also dampened the market sentiment.

But investors' risk appetite rose on Tuesday amid news that Israel and Iran halted attacks on each other after a warning from U.S. President Donald Trump, and a tech rebound on Wall Street.

Overnight, the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed 0.16 percent lower, while the S&P 500 rose 0.3 percent and the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite added 0.86 percent.

Micron surged 9.87 percent, SanDisk increased 5.3 percent, Nvidia gained 1.73 percent, and AMD rose 5.14 percent amid sentiment that business fundamentals in AI-related sectors remain strong.

"As the negative factors that had triggered the sharp market decline began to ease, investors engaged in bargain hunting, particularly in large-cap semiconductor stocks, which had recently suffered steep losses," said Lee Kyoung-min, an analyst at Daishin Securities.

But analysts said the Kospi may see continued volatility this week amid the planned initial public offering of SpaceX, Oracle's earnings release and the release of the U.S. Consumer Price Index, which will provide further clues on the Fed's rate path.

Samsung Electronics jumped 8.97 percent to 322,000 won, while SK hynix shot up 15.91 percent to 2.2 million won.

AI investment firm SK Square skyrocketed 13.51 percent to 1.27 million won, while Samsung Electro-Mechanics escalated 18.39 percent to 1.97 million won.

Battery maker LG Energy Solution rose 2.06 percent to 396,500 won, while Samsung SDI gained 2.39 percent to 515,000 won.

Samsung Life Insurance increased 4.66 percent to 393,000 won, and Samsung C&T climbed 5.02 percent to 429,000 won. Samsung Biologics expanded 4.26 percent to 1.3 million won, and power plant manufacturer Doosan Enerbility advanced 7.58 percent to 92,300 won.

Auto shares were mixed. Hyundai Motor was flat at 639,000 won, while its sister Kia surged 8.52 percent to 164,300 won. Hyundai Mobis dropped 2.78 percent to 595,000 won.

Internet portal operator Naver slid 7.89 percent to 257,000 won, and home appliances maker LG Electronics plunged 7.46 percent to 248,000 won.

The local currency rose 22.9 won from the previous session to trade at 1,512.10 won against the greenback at 3:30 p.m.

The local currency has gained ground after financial authorities issued a strong verbal intervention the previous day.

Yonhap