Seoul: Seoul shares ended higher Friday, led by gains in tech and shipbuilding stocks, although investors remained cautious about the impact of shifting U.S. tariffs on major companies' earnings. The Korean won rose sharply against the U.S. dollar.
According to Yonhap News Agency, the benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 3.18 points, or 0.12 percent, to close at 2,559.79, marking a 0.5 percent advance for the week. The KOSPI had opened lower, defying overnight gains on Wall Street where the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed 0.21 percent higher and the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite gained 1.52 percent.
Trade volume was moderate, with 579.17 million shares worth 8.25 trillion won (US$5.84 billion) changing hands, as losers outnumbered gainers 450 to 418. Institutions bought a net 302.5 billion won worth of stocks, offsetting net selling by foreigners and individuals, valued respectively at 170 billion won and 215 billion won.
Local tech stocks gained traction following positive performance by U.S. peers, such as Microsoft and Meta Platforms, which committed to continued investments in artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure. Analysts noted that SK hynix saw significant benefits from these capital expenditure plans by U.S. tech giants.
In Seoul, tech and shipbuilding stocks spearheaded the gains. Chipmaker SK hynix surged 4.79 percent to 186,000 won, while Hyundai Mipo Shipyard rose 3.24 percent to 172,100 won. KT Corp., South Korea's second-largest wireless carrier, increased by 3.28 percent to 53,500 won, in contrast to its larger rival SK Telecom, which fell 1.1 percent to 53,700 won amid efforts to enhance customer protection following a recent network data breach. Among other decliners, leading automaker Hyundai Motor slipped 0.63 percent to 189,400 won.
The local currency strengthened against the U.S. dollar, trading at 1,405.30 won at 3:30 p.m., up 15.7 won from the previous session. Bond prices fell, moving inversely to yields; the yield on three-year Treasurys climbed 1.5 basis points to 2.282 percent, while the return on the benchmark five-year government bonds increased 1.9 basis points to 2.394 percent.