South Korean shares hit 29-month high as auto, financial stocks jump

SEOUL: Round-up of South Korean financial markets:

South Korean shares rise on robust data; battery, biopharma stocks jump

• South Korean shares rose on Thursday to hit their highest level in 29 months, as auto and financial stocks jumped after the government unveiled tax cut plans to encourage higher dividend payouts.

• The benchmark KOSPI climbed 24.97 points, or 0.89%, to 2,818.98 by 0037 GMT, hitting its highest level since late January 2022.

• The Transport Equipment Index rose 1.24%, with Hyundai Motor up 1.45% and sister automaker Kia Corp up 1.94%.

• The Finance-major Index gained 2.24%, the Securities-minor Index climbed 2.23%, and the Insurance Index jumped 3.21%.

• Auto and financial stocks have been cited as those which have potential to pay more dividends to shareholders.

• The government said on Wednesday it would offer tax exemptions on corporate income for increases in capital returns to shareholders, as part of its “Corporate Value-up Programme”.

• Chipmaker Samsung Electronics was up 1.34%, after rising more than 3% earlier in the day. Samsung said a local media report that its high-end chips passed Nvidia’s test for use was inaccurate.

• Rival SK Hynix, which already supplies to Nvidia, was down 0.64%, after declining more than 4% earlier. Shares of the US chipmaker rose 4.6% overnight.

• Battery maker LG Energy Solution climbed 1.12%, tracking a rally in US electric-vehicle maker Tesla . Peer Samsung SDI added 1.91%.

• Foreigners were net buyers of shares worth 191.8 billion won ($138.63 million) on the main board.

• The won was quoted at 1,384.3 per dollar on the onshore settlement platform, 0.11% higher than its previous close at 1,385.8.

• In money and debt markets, September futures on three-year treasury bonds rose 0.06 point to 105.32.

• The most liquid three-year Korean treasury bond yield fell by 1.5 basis points to 3.148%, while the benchmark 10-year yield fell by 2.8 basis points to 3.251%.