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| ▲ This photo taken Jan. 5, 2026, shows the dealing room of Hana Bank in Seoul. (Yonhap) |
(LEAD) stocks-summary
(LEAD) KOSPI soars over 3 pct to hit fresh record high on tech rally
(ATTN: UPDATES with details throughout; CHANGES photo)
SEOUL, Jan. 5 (Yonhap) -- Seoul shares surged by more than 3 percent Monday to close at a fresh record high, driven by a strong rally in semiconductor and other technology stocks. The Korean won fell against the U.S. dollar.
The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) jumped 147.89 points, or 3.43 percent, to close at 4,457.52, breaking the 4,400 mark for the first time.
The previous record was set Friday, when the index closed at 4,309.63 amid strong optimism over artificial intelligence (AI)-driven growth.
Trading volume was heavy at 509.64 million shares worth 22.5 trillion won (US$15.6 billion), with losers narrowly outnumbering gainers 447 to 436.
The index opened higher despite a mixed close on Wall Street and extended its gains, supported by continued foreign buying.
On Friday (U.S. time), the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.66 percent to 48,382.39 points, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite fell 0.03 percent to 23,235.63.
Foreign investors bought a net 2.17 trillion won worth of shares, offsetting net selling by institutions and individuals of 702.37 billion won and 1.51 trillion won, respectively.
The U.S. capture of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro appears to have not affected the global markets as Venezuela's oil infrastructure remains intact despite the U.S. attacks in Caracas and other states, analysts said.
"In particular, today's tech rally in Seoul is in line with sharp gains in Micron Technology in the U.S. bourse on Friday," No Dong-kil, an analyst at Shinhan Securities Co., said over the phone.
Tech and auto stocks led the gains.
Market bellwether Samsung Electronics jumped by 7.47 percent, the most in six years, to a record high of 138,100 won, while chip giant SK hynix rose 2.81 percent to 696,000 won.
Top carmaker Hyundai Motor advanced 2.01 percent to 304,500 won, and its smaller affiliate Kia gained 1.66 percent to 122,600 won.
Leading steelmaker POSCO Holdings rose 1.68 percent to 302,500 won, and leading shipbuilder HD Hyundai climbed 3.69 percent to 191,000 won.
Among decliners, No. 1 shipping firm HMM fell 1.73 percent to 19,850 won, and beverage firm Hitejinro declined 0.55 percent to 18,150 won.
Leading wireless services provider SK Telecom shed 0.56 percent to 53,000 won, and Samyang Foods dropped 0.16 percent to 1,274,000 won.
The local currency was quoted at 1,443.80 won against the greenback at 3:30 p.m., down 2 won from the previous session.
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