SEOUL, April 15 (AJP) - South Korea’s KOSPI climbed above the 6,100 level on Wednesday, as the benchmark index rode easing war concerns to resume its record-breaking rally that had been disrupted by U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran in late February.
The main index rose 2.96 percent to 6,144.26, while the KOSDAQ gained 1.93 percent to 1,143.49 as of 10:29 a.m.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 rose 1.15 percent to 58,542.14. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index gained 1.00 percent to 26,131.14, and China’s Shanghai Composite Index added 0.33 percent to 4,039.85.
Samsung SDS surged more than 10 percent in early trading after announcing plans to issue 1.22 trillion won worth of convertible bonds.
The stock opened 9.70 percent higher at 166,200 won and extended gains, rising 19.08 percent to 180,400 won as of 10:00 a.m., up 28,900 won from the previous session.
Bellwether Samsung Electronics gained 3.63 percent to 214,000 won, while SK hynix rose 5.53 percent to 1,164,000 won ahead of its earnings release next week.
In the auto sector, Hyundai Motor climbed 4.37 percent to 513,000 won, and Kia added 2.61 percent to 153,100 won.
Battery and energy shares were also in positive territory, with LG Energy Solution up 1.75 percent at 407,000 won and SK Inc. gaining 4.84 percent to 671,000 won. Hanwha Aerospace edged up 0.26 percent to 1,527,000 won.
Biopharmaceutical stocks saw moderate gains, as Samsung Biologics rose 2.15 percent to 1,569,000 won and Doosan Enerbility advanced 4.61 percent to 104,300 won.
Financials also moved higher across the board, with KB Financial Group up 2.05 percent at 159,100 won, Samsung Life Insurance rising 5.49 percent to 259,500 won, and Shinhan Financial Group gaining 1.32 percent to 99,600 won.
All major KOSDAQ stocks also traded higher.
Among biopharmaceutical and healthcare shares, Alteogen rose 3.97 percent to 367,000 won, Samchundang Pharm gained 3.08 percent to 536,000 won, and ABL Bio climbed 3.91 percent to 162,000 won. HLB and LigaChem Biosciences also advanced 1.12 percent and 5.30 percent to 63,400 won and 190,600 won, respectively.
In other sectors, Ecopro and Ecopro BM rose 3.81 percent and 3.39 percent to 149,700 won and 204,500 won, respectively, while Rainbow Robotics gained 1.16 percent to 610,000 won. Koh Young Technology jumped 9.32 percent to 104,400 won, and Rino Industrial edged up 0.54 percent to 112,200 won.
The dollar retreated on foreign stock buying, trading at 1,471.80 won, compared with the previous close of 1,481.20.
Overnight on Wall Street, U.S. tech stocks rallied on hopes for renewed U.S.-Iran talks. Nvidia rose 3.8 percent, while Micron Technology surged 9.17 percent, extending gains in the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index, which climbed 2.04 percent for a 10th consecutive session.
Buying sentiment was supported by softer U.S. producer price data, easing inflation concerns. The U.S. Labor Department said the Producer Price Index (PPI) rose 0.5 percent in March, well below the Dow Jones consensus estimate of a 1.1 percent increase.
Meanwhile, oil prices pulled back sharply. West Texas Intermediate fell 7.9 percent to $91.28, while Brent crude dropped 4.6 percent to $94.79 a barrel.
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