South Korean stocks closed at a fresh record high above 4,800 points, extending their rally to an 11th consecutive session amid buying in semiconductor shares. The benchmark KOSPI rose 0.9 percent to 4,840.74. The local currency fell 3.9 won to 1,473.6 against the U.S. dollar.
On January 16, South Korean stocks ended at a fresh record high above 4,800 points, extending their rally to an 11th consecutive session driven by buying momentum in semiconductor shares. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 43.19 points, or 0.9 percent, to close at 4,840.74. Before closing, the index touched an intraday record of 4,863.82 at 3:22 p.m. It marked the 11th straight day of gains since the start of the year, hitting fresh highs daily. Over the 11-session rally, the KOSPI has climbed nearly 15 percent, first reaching the 4,300-point level on Jan. 2. It took only two days to break above 4,500 points before hitting the 4,800 line in the 11th session. The rally builds on last year's sharp gains, with the benchmark ending 2025 at 4,214.17 on Dec. 30, up from 2,398.94 at the year's start, for an annual return of more than 75 percent. Reflecting the surge, total market capitalization hit 4,004.9 trillion won after Friday's close, topping 4,000 trillion won for the first time. Trade volume was heavy at 701.2 million shares worth 26.6 trillion won (US$18.1 billion), with decliners outnumbering gainers 504 to 373. Foreigners and institutions led the buying, netting 405 billion won and 338.5 billion won in local shares, respectively, while retail investors sold a net 938 billion won. "Gains from Samsung Electronics led the record-breaking rally following TSMC's latest annual growth report and the U.S.-Taiwan trade agreement," said Lee Jae-won, an analyst from Shinhan Securities. "The KOSPI is expected to further extend its robust run as major companies are predicted to come up with better-than-expected earnings reports," he added. Semiconductor leader Samsung Electronics jumped 3.47 percent to 148,900 won, and SK hynix added 0.93 percent to 756,000 won. Energy firm Doosan Enerbility soared 6.48 percent to 95,300 won, and state-run Korea Power Corp. advanced 1.67 percent to 54,700 won. Samyang Foods gained 0.25 percent to 1.2 million won, while cosmetics maker Cosmax surged 3.14 percent to 187,300 won. Top carmaker Hyundai Motor declined 2.13 percent to 413,000 won, and Samsung Biologics slipped 0.92 percent to 1.95 million won. Bond yields fell, with the three-year Treasury at 3.080 percent, down 1 basis point, and the five-year at 3.320 percent, down 0.4 basis point.
