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Kospi closes up for 2nd day on oil price retreat, tech boost

Published: 17 Mar. 2026, 17:23 Updated: 17 Mar. 2026, 19:46

A screen at Hana Bank's trading room in central Seoul shows the Kospi closing at 5,640.48 on March 17, up 90.63 points, or 1.63 percent, from the previous trading session. [YONHAP]

Shares rose for the second consecutive session Tuesday, driven by a drop in global oil prices and the strong performance of blue chip tech shares boosted by reignited optimism in the AI sector.

The benchmark Kospi rose 90.63 points, or 1.63 percent, to end at 5,640.48.

Trade volume was moderate at 1.1 billion shares worth 21.8 trillion won ($14.6 billion), with winners outnumbering losers 629 to 257.

Institutions purchased a net 733.8 billion won worth of local shares to offset a 175.6 billion-won and 570.2 billion-won sell-off by foreigners and retail investors, respectively.

The Kospi's rise was in line with overnight gains on Wall Street boosted by a drop in global oil prices that came amid expectations for the possible reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, a key Middle Eastern oil export route, and hopes for an additional plan for oil releases by major economies.

Brent crude oil prices, the international oil benchmark, dropped 2.8 percent to US$100.21 per barrel, while the price of U.S. benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) dipped 5.3 percent to $93.5.

Experts said the upbeat mood was also fueled by expectations for the AI market created after Nvidia's CEO Jensen Huang said during the company's GTC event that the U.S. chip giant is expected to generate at least $1 trillion in sales within the next year.

"The Kospi gained ground on signs of easing uncertainties tied to the Iran crisis and favorable news for Korean companies from GTC 2026 that pushed up big-cap semiconductor and automobile shares," Kang Jin-hyuk, an analyst at Shinhan Securities, said.

Tech behemoth Samsung Electronics jumped 2.76 percent to 193,900 won after the company said it will triple its production of high bandwidth memory (HBM) this year and unveiled its first HBM4E sample during the GTC event. SK hynix, another chipmaking giant, however, lost 0.41 percent to 970,000 won.

Auto giant Hyundai Motor surged 3.16 percent to 522,000 won on news that the company is expanding its partnership with Nvidia in the future mobility sector. Its sister Kia soared 3.27 percent to 167,300 won, and its auto parts-making affiliate, Hyundai Mobis, increased 2.85 percent to 412,500 won.

AI investment firm SK Square escalated 4.45 percent to 587,000 won, and Shinsegae Information & Communication shot up almost 30 percent to 22,600 won on news the company is entering an AI data center business. Internet portal operator Naver climbed 2.75 percent to 224,000 won.

Bio shares also gained ground, with Samsung Biologics rising 1.21 percent to 1.59 million won and Celltrion advancing 3 percent to 206,000 won.

On the other hand, major defense firm Hanwha Aerospace slid 5.42 percent to 1.4 million won, and Mirae Asset Securities dipped 2.54 percent to 69,100 won.

The local currency strengthened 3.9 won from the previous session to trade at 1,493.6 against the dollar at 3:30 p.m.

Bond prices, which move inversely to yields, closed lower. The yield on three-year Treasurys added 2.4 basis points to 3.324 percent, and the return on the benchmark five-year government bonds rose 2.2 basis points to 3.578 percent.

Yonhap