South Korean shares rise on Nvidia-driven chip rally, central bank decision

SEOUL: Round-up of South Korean financial markets:

• South Korean shares rose on Thursday, led by chipmaker SK Hynix after a rally in its key customer, US-based artificial intelligence chip giant Nvidia, and as investors welcomed the central bank’s decision to stand pat on its interest rates.

• The benchmark KOSPI was up 19.24 points, or 0.61%, at 3,152.98, as of 0055 GMT, its highest intraday level since mid-September 2021.

• As expected, the Bank of Korea held interest rates steady, as policymakers steered a cautious path amid concerns about financial stability risks stemming from rising household debt and economic pressure from US tariffs.

• Shares of SK Hynix advanced 1.51%, mirroring a strong performance in Nvidia after the AI darling became the world’s first company to hit a $4 trillion market value.

• Nvidia’s soaring market value underscores Wall Street’s confidence in the rapid growth of AI, with the company’s high-performance chips forming the backbone of this technological advance.

• Among other index heavyweights, rival Samsung Electronics rose 0.5% and battery maker LG Energy Solution climbed 1.07%.

• Hyundai Motor and sister automaker Kia Corp were trading unchanged and up 0.7%, respectively. Steelmaker POSCO Holdings shed 0.16%, while drugmaker Samsung BioLogics rose 5.01%.

• Of the total 932 traded issues, 550 shares advanced, while 324 declined.

• Foreigners were net sellers of shares worth 69.8 billion won ($50.88 million).

• The won was quoted at 1,372.0 per dollar on the onshore settlement platform, 0.23% higher than its previous close at 1,375.2.

• In money and debt markets, September futures on three-year treasury bonds gained 0.07 point to 107.22.

• The most liquid three-year Korean treasury bond yield fell 1.7 basis points to 2.460%, while the benchmark 10-year yield fell 4.1 basis points to 2.820%.