South Korea Financial Markets

Dealers walk past near the screens showing the foreign exchange rates at a dealing room of Hana Bank in Seoul, South Korea, Wednesday, May 6, 2026.

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AI boom drives a rally in buying of tech shares, pushing South Korea's Kospi to a record

AI boom drives a rally in buying of tech shares, pushing South Korea's Kospi to a record

South Korea’s Kospi has soared nearly 7% to a fresh record as Samsung Electronics' stock jumped nearly 13% in a rally driven by expectations of strong growth in artificial intelligence. Shares in SK Hynix, another major Korean computer chipmaker, shot up 10% early Wednesday. Shares mostly rose in other Asian markets. On Wall Street, stock prices rose to records Tuesday after oil prices eased and companies kept reporting bigger profits than analysts expected. The S&P 500 climbed 0.8% to top its prior all-time high set at the end of last week. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 356 points, or 0.7%, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite set its own record after rallying 1%.