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Kospi surpasses 3,000 points for first time in three years amid market reform optimism

Published: 20 Jun. 2025, 14:09 Updated: 20 Jun. 2025, 14:21

A screen in Hana Bank's trading room in central Seoul shows the Korea's main Kospi bourse surpass 3,000 on June 20. [NEWS1]

Korea’s benchmark Kospi index soared past the 3,000-point mark Friday morning for the first time in more than three years, lifted by growing optimism over the Lee Jae Myung administration’s stock market stimulus policies, foreign buying momentum and easing tariff-related concerns.

As of 11:30 a.m., the Kospi stood at 3,009.39, up 31.65 points or 1.06 percent from the previous day’s close.

After fluctuating in the 2,980 to 2,990 range early in the session, the index broke above 3,000 at around 10:45 a.m. and continued to build gains.

This marks the first intraday break above the 3,000 threshold since Jan. 3, 2022.

Foreign and institutional investors led the rally, purchasing 34 billion won ($25 million) and 20 billion won worth of stocks, respectively. Meanwhile, retail investors sold off roughly 63 billion won to realize profits. The tech-heavy Kosdaq index also climbed 0.87 percent to 789.33 at the same time.

The rally comes despite lingering geopolitical risks in the Middle East, which weighed on European markets overnight. U.S. markets were closed Thursday for Juneteenth.

Analysts attribute the Kospi's sharp gains to renewed investor confidence in pro-market reforms expected from the Lee administration. Anticipated measures include revisions to commercial law to strengthen fiduciary duties to shareholders, enhanced dividend payouts and more aggressive share buyback and cancellation policies.

Foreign investors shifted to buying on these expectations, and retail investors followed suit with renewed bets on the market, researchers said.

"Customer deposits held by individual investors have topped 65 trillion won, the highest level since the retail trading boom of the pandemic era three years ago," said Kang Jin-hyeok, an analyst at Shinhan Securities.

Park Sang-hyun, an economist at iM Securities, pointed to diminishing trade tensions between the United States and other major economies as another factor lifting investor sentiment.

A stabilizing won, which was trading at 1,371.6 won to the dollar on Friday — up 8.19 won from the previous day — has also helped improve outlooks for foreign investors.

The rally was led by defense and shipbuilding stocks. In contrast, tech giant Samsung Electronics — traditionally the Kospi’s bellwether — remained sidelined. Shares hovered at 59,600 won in morning trading, still below the 60,000-won threshold.

Translated from the JoongAng Ilbo using generative AI and edited by Korea JoongAng Daily staff.
BY HWANG EUI-YOUNG [[email protected]]