South Korean stocks opened at a fresh record high on Monday after U.S. President Donald Trump announced plans to free ships stranded in the Strait of Hormuz, amid Washington and Tehran exchanging peace talk proposals. The benchmark KOSPI surged 2.79% to 6,782.93 at the open. Eased Middle East tensions drove the rally.
The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) opened at a fresh record high of 6,782.93, up 184.06 points or 2.79%, and stood at 6,756.17, up 157.3 points or 2.38%, as of 9:15 a.m. on Monday. It had risen for three straight sessions to close at an all-time high of 6,690.90 on Thursday before falling 1.38% to 6,598.87 on Friday.
Overnight, Trump said on social media that the United States would start a project to aid ships locked up in the key shipping route as a "humanitarian gesture" to neutral countries in the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran. Iran has been blocking nearly all shipping from the Persian Gulf for more than two months, while the U.S. imposed its own blockade on ships from Iranian ports last month.
Iran said on Sunday it had received a U.S. response to its latest peace talk offer, a day after Trump indicated he would probably reject it, noting "they have not paid a big enough price."
Most market heavyweights advanced. Samsung Electronics rose 2.61%, SK hynix jumped 4.67%, Hyundai Motor gained 0.94%, LG Energy Solution added 1.41%, Hanwha Aerospace climbed 3.53%, and HD Hyundai Heavy Industries increased 0.73%. The Korean won traded at 1,470.65 against the U.S. dollar at 9:15 a.m., down 12.25 won from the previous session. (Yonhap, The Korea Times)
