With expectations that the United States will carry out airstrikes on Iran, domestic defense stocks were broadly higher early on the 20th.
As of 9:43 a.m. that day, Hanwha Systems was trading at 115,600 won, up 9,200 won (8.65%) from the previous session.
Other stocks grouped as leading defense names, including Hanwha Aerospace (7.31%), LIG Nex1 (4.21%), Hyundai Rotem (3.10%), and Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) (1.14%), were also rising.
As nuclear talks between the United States and Iran have recently stalled, there is speculation that U.S. forces could launch airstrikes on Iran as early as this weekend.
The U.S. military has massed the largest air power in the Middle East since the 2003 invasion of Iraq. Overnight, U.S. President Donald Trump offered Iran a deadline of up to "fortnight" for a nuclear deal.
However, on the eve of a sudden strike on Iran's nuclear facilities in June last year, President Trump also mentioned a "two-week" deadline but carried out a surprise operation earlier than that. Because of this, some say it cannot be ruled out that a military operation order could be issued before the fortnight.