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Kospi opens higher on strong Nvidia earnings

Published: 26 Feb. 2026, 09:46

YOON SO-YEON
[email protected]

Korea's benchmark Kospi starts higher on the morning of Feb. 26. Numbers are shown on a dashboard inside a Hana Bank branch in central Seoul. [NEWS1]

Korean stocks pulled off a strong start Thursday as U.S. chip giant Nvidia's better-than-expected earnings report fueled a rally in semiconductor shares, climbing close to the 6,200 mark just a day after closing above the 6,000 mark for the first time on Wednesday.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) rose 90.76 points, or 1.49 percent, to 6,174.62 in the first 15 minutes of trading on Thursday morning.

Overnight, U.S. stocks finished higher as the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.63 percent and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite gained 1.26 percent. Nvidia reported its fourth-quarter revenue of $68.13 billion to beat analysts estimates, renewing optimism over the artificial intelligence technology's potential benefits.

In Seoul, semiconductor shares led the early gains.

Samsung Electronics jumped 4.42 percent, and SK hynix increased 2.16 percent. Hanmi Semiconductor, a major chip equipment manufacturer, surged 11.19 percent. Internet giant Naver advanced 3.56 percent, and its rival Kakao soared 5.57 percent.

Top carmaker Hyundai Motor added 0.17 percent, and leading battery maker LG Energy Solution rose 2.7 percent.

The won strengthened 5.15 won from the previous session against the dollar, to trade at 1,424.15 won at 9:15 a.m.

Korea's bourse Kospi closed at a record 6,083.86 on Wednesday after hitting an intraday high of 6,144.71. Many analysts at home and abroad say the rally could extend further, potentially reaching 8,000.

BY YOON SO-YEON, YONHAP [[email protected]]