Lead

South Korean stocks closed at a record high on Wednesday, with the benchmark KOSPI settling above the 6,400 level for the first time, as optimism over corporate earnings outweighed lingering geopolitical uncertainty. The index rose 29.46 points, or 0.46%, to 6,417.93, surpassing its previous record of 6,388.47 set just a day earlier, according to multiple reports from Yonhap News.

The gains continued Thursday, with the KOSPI advancing 48.04 points, or 0.75%, to 6,465.97 as of 11:20 a.m., briefly touching the 6,500 level for the first time ever before trimming gains.

Coverage Comparison

Multiple dispatches from Yonhap News, South Korea's leading wire service, covered Wednesday's market close with consistent details on the index level and the day's trading activity. All reports attributed the rally to a solid corporate earnings outlook, which helped investors look past uncertainty surrounding U.S.-Iran peace talks. A separate Yonhap report covering Thursday's intraday trading attributed continued gains to large-cap technology shares and the U.S. decision to extend its ceasefire with Iran indefinitely.

Key Claims

  • The KOSPI rose 29.46 points, or 0.46%, to close at 6,417.93 on Wednesday, marking its third consecutive session of gains.
  • Trade volume was heavy at 892.4 million shares worth 30.7 trillion won (about US$20.8 billion), with losers outpacing gainers 464 to 396.
  • Individual investors were the primary buyers, purchasing a net 1.24 trillion won worth of stocks, while foreigners and institutions sold a net 674.9 billion won and 444.4 billion won, respectively.
  • The local currency weakened against the U.S. dollar.
  • On Thursday, the KOSPI gained 48.04 points, or 0.75%, to 6,465.97 as of mid-morning.
  • SK hynix reported record revenue and profits for the first quarter, driven by strong demand for high bandwidth memory (HBM) and other memory segments.
  • U.S. President Donald Trump announced an indefinite extension of the two-week ceasefire with Iran.

Perspectives

Analysts offered insight into the market's behavior. Kang Jin-hyuk, an analyst at Shinhan Securities, was quoted in Yonhap's Wednesday report as saying that following Trump's ceasefire extension announcement, investors offloaded market heavyweights such as Samsung Electronics and SK hynix for bargain hunting. He noted that battery and electronics components shares led the advance as they are widely expected to report strong first-quarter earnings. This suggests that while geopolitical headlines initially caused caution, earnings expectations became the driving force behind the record close.

On Thursday, market gains were led by technology shares, with Samsung Electronics surging 2.76% and SK hynix rising 0.08% after its record earnings report. AI investment firm SK Square climbed 0.83%, and nuclear power plant builder Doosan Enerbility jumped 4.83%. However, some sectors lagged: leading battery maker LG Energy Solution sank 3.41%, and defense giant Hanwha Aerospace dipped 0.14%, indicating selective buying rather than broad-based optimism.

Correction and Temporal Context

A previous version of this article indicated that the KOSPI rose on Wednesday. That remains accurate. However, later dispatches from Yonhap provided updated figures for Thursday, which are included above. The Thursday report is based on intraday trading as of 11:20 a.m. and may be revised in subsequent coverage.

All reports cited are from Yonhap News, and no conflicting information from other outlets was available in the provided material.