▲ The closing prices for the Kospi and Kosdaq are displayed on the electronic board at the dealing room of Hana Bank in Jung-gu, Seoul, on the 9th, as the Kospi recaptured the 7,000 mark for the first time in 33 trading sessions. (Photo: Yonhap News)
The Kospi surpassed the 7,000 threshold on a closing basis today (the 9th) for the first time in 33 trading sessions, driven by sustained AI momentum.
According to the Korea Exchange, the Kospi finished the session up 97.12 points, or 1.40 percent, at 7,051.64.
This marks the first time the index has closed above the 7,000 line since July 23, when it closed at 7,096.89.
Opening at 6,972.87, up 18.35 points or 0.26 percent from the previous session, the index maintained an upward trajectory throughout regular trading hours.
It climbed as high as 7,112.48 during the intra-day session.
In terms of supply and demand, institutional investors spearheaded the index's advance.
While retail investors and foreign investors net sold 2.2874 trillion won and 427.1 billion won, respectively, institutions net bought 941.7 billion won in the Kospi market.
Additionally, other corporations recorded a buying advantage of 1.7807 trillion won.
Retail investors extended their selling streak to 5 consecutive sessions, offloading a total of 16.8356 trillion won over this period.
Meanwhile, foreign investors net bought 60.4 billion won in the Kospi 200 futures market.
The won-dollar exchange rate stood at 1,336.1 won, down 9.5 won in the Seoul foreign exchange market as of 3:30 p.m.
The Kospi rose on the back of AI momentum, fueled by persistent positive sentiment surrounding semiconductors originating from OpenAI.
Although the macroeconomic environment remains challenging with rising international oil prices driven by ongoing military conflicts in the Middle East and climbing U.S. Treasury yields, the market appears to have maintained its upward momentum thanks to enduring enthusiasm for artificial intelligence.
U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures surpassed 94 dollars per barrel as of this afternoon, and the yield on the 10-year U.S. Treasury bonds broke past 4.8 percent.
Nevertheless, investor sentiment toward semiconductor stocks is believed to have improved as upbeat momentum surrounding OpenAI's new AI model "Astra" continued to drive strength in related equities on U.S. stock markets, alongside reaffirmed widespread demand for AI through the Citigroup TMT (Technology, Media, and Telecom) Conference and Goldman Sachs conferences.
Among large-cap stocks, SK Hynix gained 3.51 percent to close at 1.856 million won, while Samsung Electro-Mechanics (2.48 percent), Hyundai Motor (0.78 percent), and Samsung Biologics (0.83 percent) also finished higher.
Samsung Electronics finished flat at 269,500 won compared to the previous day.
In particular, secondary battery stocks such as LG Energy Solution (6.46 percent), Samsung SDI (8.30 percent), and Posco Future M (6.37 percent) rallied following foreign media reports that the U.S. Transportation Secretary had criticized automaker Ford for its collaboration with a Chinese battery company.
Conversely, shares of KB Financial (-0.98 percent), Samsung C&T (-1.57 percent), and Samsung Life Insurance (-1.46 percent) declined.
Across sectors, chemicals (3.56 percent), machinery and equipment (2.73 percent), and electrical and electronics (2.01 percent) advanced, whereas entertainment and culture (-2.66 percent), IT services (-1.36 percent), and insurance (-1.35 percent) retreated.
Within the Kospi market, 463 stocks advanced, 400 declined, and 50 remained unchanged.
The Kosdaq index closed up 18.49 points, or 2.28 percent, at 830.37.
Starting the day at 815.06, up 3.18 points or 0.39 percent from the previous session, the index expanded its gains to rise by more than 2 percent.
In the Kosdaq market, foreign investors net bought 226.9 billion won, whereas retail and institutional investors net sold 214.6 billion won and 19.7 billion won, respectively.
Among top market-cap shares, Alteogen (0.90 percent), EcoPro (7.03 percent), and EcoPro BM (9.64 percent) increased, while HLB (-0.47 percent), PharmaResearch (-0.81 percent), and Peptron (-0.48 percent) dropped.
The Kosdaq market saw 962 advancing stocks, 672 declining stocks, and 99 unchanged stocks.
Trading values for the main bourse (Kospi) and the Kosdaq market were recorded at 22.276 trillion won and 7.572 trillion won, respectively.
The total trading volume across the pre-market and main market of the alternative trading system Nextrade reached 11.9621 trillion won.
(Photo: Yonhap News)
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