Seoul stocks opened sharply higher on June 12 as investors reacted to U.S. President Donald Trump's statement that a great settlement had been reached with Iran.
The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) opened up 499.9 points, or 6.44 percent, at 8,263.85. By 9:10 a.m. it had risen further to 8,272.13, a gain of 506.95 points or 6.53 percent.
The Korea Exchange activated a buy-side sidecar, suspending program trading for five minutes after the KOSPI 200 Futures index rose more than 5 percent.
On Thursday local time President Trump said he had canceled scheduled strikes against Iran after reaching a great settlement, with a deal possibly to be signed in Europe this weekend. Iran has not confirmed the claim.
The KOSPI tracked overnight gains on Wall Street while U.S. producer inflation data for May showed its largest annual increase in three years.
