South Korea’s KOSPI rallies to another record high above 6,500

SEOUL: Round-up of South Korean financial markets:

• South Korean shares crossed the 6,500 level for the first time on Thursday, as SK Hynix’s record earnings bolstered investor sentiment amid uncertainties surrounding the US-Iran peace talks.
• The won strengthened, while the benchmark bond yield rose.
• The benchmark KOSPI was up 111.63 points, or 1.78%, at 6,532.24, as of 0116 GMT, extending its year-to-date gain to 55%.
• SK Hynix posted a more than five-fold jump in first-quarter operating profit to a record high, as the artificial intelligence boom drove strong demand for both advanced and conventional memory chip products. Its shares gained 0.82%.
• Among other index heavyweights, chipmaker Samsung Electronics rose 5.29%. Battery maker LG Energy Solution slid 3.20%.
• Hyundai Motor and sister automaker Kia Corp were up 0.55% and up 1.19%, respectively. Steelmaker POSCO Holdings shed 0.60%, while drugmaker Samsung BioLogics fell 0.77%.
• South Korea’s economy beat expectations in the first quarter of 2026 to record the fastest growth since mid-2020, as booming semiconductor demand offset the drag of weak public spending, central bank data showed.
• Of the total 905 traded issues, 304 shares advanced, while 542 declined.
• Foreigners were net buyers of shares worth 502.4 billion won.
• The won was quoted at 1,478.3 per dollar on the onshore settlement platform, 0.14% higher than its previous close at 1,480.3.
• The won has weakened 2.6% against the dollar so far this year.
• In money and debt markets, June futures on three-year treasury bonds lost 0.23 point to 104.04.
• The most liquid three-year Korean treasury bond yield rose by 7.6 basis points to 3.443%, while the benchmark 10-year yield rose by 7.5 basis points to

3.775%.