On the 27th, the KOSPI settled above the 6,900 level to close higher. A tailwind from strong earnings by U.S. artificial intelligence (AI) bellwether Nvidia and large-scale buying by other corporations led the index higher.
The KOSPI closed at 6,912.37, up 104.16 points (1.53%) from the previous trading day. The index opened at 6,996.12, up 187.91 points (2.76%) from the day before, attempting to break through the 7,000 level early in the session. However, it gave back part of its gains in the morning after news that the Bank of Korea's monetary policy committee raised the base rate.
The key driver behind the market's rise was other corporations. In the main board, other corporations were net buyers of 1.5861 trillion won, firmly supporting the index floor. The market assumes a large influx of share repurchases by major semiconductor names such as Samsung Electronics and SK hynix. Foreigners and institutions also added support by buying 582.8 billion won and 459.5 billion won, respectively. In contrast, individuals turned to profit-taking, net selling more than 2.6283 trillion won.
Nvidia's strong results announced the day before appear to have had a positive effect on the domestic stock market. Announced on the 26th (local time), Nvidia's second-quarter revenue was $96.22 billion, up 106% from a year earlier, and adjusted earnings per share (EPS) were $2.22, both beating market expectations. On initial concerns about a slowdown in gross margin, the stock briefly turned lower in after-hours trading, but it reversed to a gain of around 3% after CEO Jensen Huang offered a positive outlook for AI infrastructure demand and a long-term growth guideline.
As concerns over the AI Semiconductor cycle eased, Samsung Electronics (1.34%) and SK hynix(000660) (1.90%), Korea's leading semiconductor stocks, drew upward-sloping lines to finish higher. Power infrastructure plays Gaon Cable(000500) (25.00%), LS Eco Energy (9.38%), and Iljin Electric (8.53%), along with secondary battery names Samsung SDI (10.27%) and LG Energy Solution (5.56%), also posted sharp gains.
However, as the Bank of Korea's monetary policy committee decided to raise the base rate by 0.25 percentage point to 3.00% from the previous annual 2.75% on the day, concerns over liquidity tightening appear to have slightly pared the KOSPI's gains. Right after the rate-hike announcement, the KOSPI, which had been attempting to break through the 7,000 level, trimmed its advance on the main board and paused around the 6,900 level.
The KOSDAQ index also closed higher around the 830 level. Starting at 828.42, up 1.55 points (0.19%) from the previous day, the index finished the session at 837.65, up 10.78 points (1.30%) from the prior trading day. In the KOSDAQ market, foreigners were net buyers of 101.0 billion won and institutions 39.3 billion won, while individuals showed a net selling advantage of 142.2 billion won.
In the KOSDAQ market, semiconductor parts and materials names such as Haechitech(0155E0) (20.19%), GIS (9.19%), NEPES (7.35%), and PSK Holdings (6.54%), as well as pharmaceutical and biotech stocks such as Huons Global (29.83%) and Vivozon Pharmaceutical (8.89%), surged, underpinning the index's rise.