KOSPI Jumps More Than 2% to Top 6,370 on Foreign and Institutional Buying

By Yang Boyeon Posted : April 21, 2026, 17:12 Updated : April 21, 2026, 17:12
Dealers work at the dealing room of Hana Bank’s headquarters in Seoul on the 21st, as the KOSPI briefly set an intraday record high. [Photo=Yonhap]

South Korea’s KOSPI surged more than 2% in intraday trading, breaking past its previous high. Shares rose, led by semiconductors, on expectations for the upcoming earnings season despite concerns about volatility tied to the Middle East.

According to the Korea Exchange, the KOSPI was up 150.91 points, or 2.43%, at 6,370.00 as of 1:48 p.m. The index opened up 83.45 points, or 1.34%, at 6,302.54 and extended gains on foreign buying.

In the main market, foreigners and institutions were net buyers of 1.2823 trillion won and 631.3 billion won, respectively, while individuals were net sellers of 1.8002 trillion won.

Among large-cap stocks, Samsung Electronics rose 1.86% and SK hynix gained 4.55%. Hyundai Motor added 2.66%, LG Energy Solution jumped 9.91% and SK Square rose 1.00%. Samsung Biologics slipped 0.37% and Hanwha Aerospace fell 2.25%.

The KOSDAQ was down 1.21 points, or 0.10%, at 1,173.64 at the same time.

The index opened up 11.38 points, or 0.97%, at 1,186.23, but turned lower as foreigners and institutions sold.

In the KOSDAQ market, individuals were net buyers of 552.1 billion won, while foreigners and institutions were net sellers of 395.7 billion won and 98.8 billion won, respectively.

Among top KOSDAQ shares, Alteogen fell 0.54%, Rainbow Robotics dropped 1.64%, Samchundang Pharm slid 0.21%, ABL Bio lost 2.87% and Kolon TissueGene sank 6.21%. EcoPro rose 3.98%, EcoPro BM gained 4.29% and Lino Industrial added 0.34%.



* This article has been translated by AI.

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