South Korean stocks opened at a record high Thursday, with the KOSPI benchmark nearing 6,500 points, driven by large-cap tech gains and the United States' indefinite extension of its ceasefire with Iran. U.S. President Donald Trump announced the decision following stalled peace talks. The index marked new records for the third consecutive session.
The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) opened at 6,488.83, up 70.9 points or 1.1 percent, and rose 62.23 points or 0.97 percent to 6,480.16 in the first 15 minutes of trading. The index surpassed its previous all-time high set about two months ago on Monday and has set new records for three consecutive sessions through Thursday.
Overnight, U.S. stocks closed higher on strong corporate earnings, with the S&P 500 up 1.05 percent and the Nasdaq Composite climbing 1.64 percent to record closing highs. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.69 percent.
In Seoul, big-cap tech shares led gains. Samsung Electronics surged 3.22 percent, while SK hynix advanced 1.47 percent after reporting record first-quarter revenue and profits driven by demand for high bandwidth memory (HBM). Hyundai Motor rose 0.18 percent and Kia 0.19 percent. SK Square climbed 1.67 percent, and Doosan Enerbility jumped 5 percent.
Decliners included LG Energy Solution, down 4.13 percent, and Hanwha Aerospace, off 0.71 percent. KB Financial fell 1.46 percent, and POSCO dropped 0.96 percent. Shipbuilders weakened, with HD Hyundai Heavy down 3.43 percent and Hanwha Ocean decreasing 1.04 percent. The won traded at 1,480.95 against the dollar at 9:15 a.m., down 4.95 won amid rising global oil prices.
