KOSPI attempts to reclaim the 8,400 level on hopes for an end to the war and AI tailwinds [fn morning market report]

[Financial News] The Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose more than 2% in early trading on the 29th, supported by hopes for a ceasefire deal between the United States and Iran and improved investor sentiment toward artificial intelligence (AI) investments from the U.S. It is now trying to reclaim the 8,400 level. As inflation concerns eased overnight on the New York stock market, the upbeat tone from surging demand for semiconductors and AI servers is spreading to the domestic market’s two leading chip names and the information technology (IT) sector. In contrast, the KOSDAQ opened higher but soon turned lower as large-cap secondary battery stocks weakened, diverging from the main board.
According to the Korea Exchange (KRX), as of 10:45 a.m. the KOSPI was trading at 8,386.13, up 200.84 points, or 2.45%, from the previous session. The index opened at 8,384.31, up 199.02 points, or 2.43%, from the previous close, and at one point surged to 8,424.53, briefly moving back above 8,400.
On the main board, institutions were the only net buyers, purchasing 1.7 trillion won worth of shares and leading the market higher. Foreign investors, meanwhile, were net sellers by about 900 billion won, extending their net selling streak to 16 consecutive sessions. Retail investors were also net sellers, offloading 850 billion won.
The rally in the domestic market reflects easing geopolitical risks and stable U.S. macroeconomic indicators. Foreign media reported that the United States has completed working-level discussions on a memorandum of understanding to end the war with Iran and is circulating the draft to allies including Israel. On hopes for a ceasefire deal, international oil prices are stabilizing, with West Texas Intermediate crude oil (WTI) futures falling into the $80-per-barrel range.
Inflation data also matched market expectations. The Personal Consumption Expenditures Price Index (PCE) for April, released by the United States government, rose 3.8% from a year earlier, in line with consensus estimates. On a month-over-month basis, it increased 0.4%, below the market forecast of 0.5%.
Strong earnings from major U.S. tech companies are also lifting domestic semiconductor and IT stocks. Snowflake Inc., a cloud company focused on AI data, raised its full-year revenue outlook and announced a long-term contract with Amazon Web Services (AWS), sending its shares up 36%. Semiconductor names such as NVIDIA and Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (AMD) also advanced.
In particular, Dell Technologies reported first-quarter results that beat market expectations, driven by surging demand for AI data center servers. Its shares jumped 39% in after-hours trading, while the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index (SOX) also closed up 1%.
As a result, major domestic chip stocks are also rising. Samsung Electronics is up 4.67% from the previous session after news that it became the world’s first company to begin sample shipments of HBM4E, the seventh-generation high-bandwidth memory and a key AI component, before the market opened. SK hynix also rose more than 2% and hit an intraday record high.
The ranking of KOSPI’s largest companies has also changed. Samsung Electro-Mechanics surged on expectations of stronger earnings from rising prices of multilayer ceramic capacitors (MLCC) for AI applications, trading above 2.11 million won and setting a new all-time high. Its market capitalization reached 158 trillion won, overtaking Hyundai Motor Company at 146 trillion won to move up to fourth place. In contrast, Samsung Biologics (-2.26%) and Doosan Enerbility (-1.95%) were weaker.
By sector, IT services (11.87%), electrical and electronics (3.60%), and manufacturing (2.78%) were higher, while medical and precision instruments (-4.70%) and paper and wood (-3.39%) were under pressure.
At the same time, the KOSDAQ was moving lower, unlike the main board. The index stood at 1,063.29, down 41.07 points, or 3.72%, from the previous session. It opened at 1,112.15, up 7.79 points, or 0.71%, from the previous close, but turned lower as selling emerged in large-cap stocks.
In the KOSDAQ market, retail investors were net buyers of 220.9 billion won, but foreign investors and institutions were net sellers of 139.6 billion won and 87.4 billion won, respectively, putting pressure on the index.
elikim@fnnews.com Kim Mi-hee Reporter