The KOSPI has once again crossed the 5,300 mark. It is a record high for the seventh straight session on an intraday basis. Buying flocked to semiconductor stocks led by SK hynix, widening gains in the KOSPI after it opened lower.
As of 10:30 a.m., the KOSPI was trading at 5,315.52, up 94.27 points (1.81%) from the previous session. After starting the day at 5,210.35, the KOSPI turned higher as individuals bought a net 214.6 billion won during intraday trading, and it has been extending gains. Foreign investors were net sellers of 83 billion won.
SK hynix jumped more than 7%, topping 900,000 won per share. SK hynix said it logged sales of 32.8267 trillion won and operating profit of 19.1696 trillion won in the fourth quarter of last year, achieving a quarterly record high. Its operating margin came in at 57%, surpassing Taiwan's TSMC (54%).
Brokerages collectively raised their target prices. Meritz Securities offered the highest target at 1.45 million won, while ▲ DS Investment & Securities 970,000 won ▲ Daishin Securities 1.25 million won ▲ Hana Securities 1.28 million won ▲ Korea Investment & Securities Co., Samsung Securities 1.3 million won ▲ NH Investment & Securities 1.12 million won.
Kim Seon-woo, an analyst at Meritz Securities, said of the memory cycle, "The DRAM market is currently in a phase where competitive price increases are occurring amid limited supply expansion," adding, "With B2B demand expanding centered on AI data centers, memory demand is shifting from a past B2C focus to a stepwise growth phase." HBM shipments are expected to post a high growth rate of about 70% in 2026.
SK Square (up 6.21%), whose equity value has been highlighted thanks to SK hynix, was also surging. Buying sentiment was gathering in semiconductor names such as Samsung Electronics (3.55%) and Samsung Electronics preferred (2.6%).
At the same time, the KOSDAQ was trading at 1,178.89, up 14.48 points (1.24%) from the previous session. After starting at 1,166.23, the KOSDAQ has been extending gains on individual buying during intraday trading. Individuals, through exchange-traded fund (ETF) funds, moved to buy a net 788.4 billion won.
On the KOSDAQ, ABL Bio was plunging more than 15%. On the 29th (local time), Sanofi said in its fourth-quarter earnings that it had deprioritized development of the Parkinson's drug "ABL301," which was licensed from ABL Bio in 2022. News that the drug was pushed down in development priority sharply chilled investor sentiment.