SEOUL, May 27 (AJP) - South Korean KOSPI lead the gain in major Asian markets Wednesday, with the KOSPI closing at a fresh record high above the 8,200 level, driven by a concentrated rally in semiconductor and artificial intelligence-linked large-cap shares.
The benchmark KOSPI rose 2.25 percent, or 181.19 points, to close at 8,228.70. The index opened higher and climbed as much as 5.09 percent to 8,457.09, crossing the 8,400 level for the first time, before paring gains.
Elsewhere in Asia, Japan’s Nikkei 225 ended nearly flat, rising 0.01 percent to 64,999.4. China’s Shanghai Composite fell 1.3 percent to 4,092.7, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index dropped 1.2 percent to 25,289.3.
On the main Seoul bourse, retail investors bought 406.5 billion won ($270.8 million) as institutions purchased 188 billion won. Foreign investors sold 449.8 billion won, extending their selling streak on the KOSPI to 14 consecutive sessions.
The rally was led by Samsung Electronics and SK hynix. Samsung Electronics rose 2.68 percent to close at 307,000 won after its tentative wage agreement was approved in a union vote, easing immediate concerns over labor disruption. SK hynix jumped 9.31 percent to 2,243,000 won, pushing its market capitalization above $1 trillion for the first time.
SK Square gained 8.04 percent to 1,276,000 won, as investors continued to seek indirect exposure to SK hynix through its parent company. Samsung Electronics’ preferred shares also rose 2.56 percent.
IT service and software-linked shares advanced sharply. Samsung SDS soared 29.8 percent to 261,500 won, LG CNS jumped 14.1 percent to 94,600 won and Hyundai AutoEver surged 19.9 percent to 765,000 won. Hyundai AutoEver’s rally came as investors continued to price in expectations tied to Hyundai Motor Group’s robotics, software-defined vehicle and physical AI strategy.
Other Samsung affiliates also gained, with Samsung Electro-Mechanics rising 3.69 percent and Samsung Life Insurance adding 1.87 percent.
But the broader market remained weak. Hyundai Motor fell 1.16 percent to 681,000 won, Kia lost 1.38 percent and LG Energy Solution dropped 4.01 percent to 383,500 won. Doosan Enerbility declined 3.64 percent, HD Hyundai Heavy Industries slipped 0.13 percent, Samsung C&T edged down 0.12 percent and Hanwha Aerospace fell 0.56 percent.
LS Electric dropped 8.3 percent to 261,500 won, while Samwha Capacitor fell 5.1 percent to 125,900 won and Daewoo Engineering & Construction declined 8.2 percent to 26,750 won.
Despite the KOSPI’s record close, market breadth was extremely weak. Only 77 stocks advanced on the main bourse, while 826 declined, showing that the rally was concentrated in a narrow group of semiconductor, AI and IT service names.
The junior KOSDAQ fell sharply as funds flowed out of smaller growth shares. The index dropped 3.36 percent, or 39.39 points, to close at 1,133.13. It opened at an intraday high of 1,173.80 but reversed course and fell as low as 1,128.75.
Retail investors bought 642.5 billion won on the KOSDAQ, but foreign investors sold 85 billion won as institutions dumped 551.8 billion won.
Battery, robotics and chip-equipment shares led the decline. EcoPro BM fell 2.95 percent to 313,500 won, while EcoPro lost 2.79 percent to 142,900 won. Rainbow Robotics dropped 5.18 percent, Ju Sung Engineering declined 2.35 percent, Sam Chun Dang Pharm fell 3.03 percent, HLB lost 2.67 percent and Leeno Industrial slid 7.49 percent. Jeju Semiconductor tumbled 11.6 percent to 105,100 won.
Some biotech names bucked the downtrend. Alteogen rose 5.75 percent to 386,500 won, while D&D Pharmatech hit its daily upper limit. Peptreon climbed 6.28 percent and Nature Cell jumped 9.4 percent to 32,000 won after announcing three-year follow-up results for its degenerative arthritis stem-cell treatment.
The Korean won strengthened slightly against the dollar. The dollar-won exchange rate was quoted around 1,500.9 won, down 0.4 percent from the previous session.
Oil prices also moved lower. West Texas Intermediate crude fell 2.7 percent to $91.3 per barrel, while Brent crude declined 2.2 percent to $97.4.
The session showed that Korea was the clear outperformer in Asia, but the KOSPI’s record close masked a deeply narrow rally driven mainly by semiconductor and AI-linked heavyweights.
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