After US Congress confirmed Joe Biden as the presidential election winner, leading US stock benchmarks surged to record highs on Thursday (local time). South Korea’s main bourse also hit an all-time high in intraday trading on Friday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average, the index for 30 top-performing US firms, rose 0.69 percent to 31,041.13 while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite jumped 2.56 percent to 13,067.48. The S&P 500, which tracks the stocks of 500 large-cap US firms, increased

South Korean stocks opened higher Friday, taking a cue from overnight Wall Street gains over global recovery hopes. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index rose 53.49 points, or 1.76 percent, to 3,085.17 in the first 20 minutes of trading. Stocks came to a strong start, led by chemical and auto gains. The gains were largely attributed to speculations that the upcoming US administration would increase stimulus and spending. Samsung Electronics added 1.93 percent, and No. 2 chipmaker SK

After South Korea’s benchmark Kospi hit the historic 3,000 mark a day before, the bull market continued unabated Thursday as it set a fresh record thanks to foreign and institutional investors who turned to net buyers. The Kospi began at 2,980.75 in the morning, up 12.54 points or 0.42 percent from the previous session’s close. Within a minute of the market opening, it soon recovered to 3,000 points and then rose to its fresh high of 3,055.28 during intraday trading. Fueled by in

South Korean stocks rallied Thursday to close above the 3,000-point mark for the first time, backed by strong foreign and institutional buying triggered by US stimulus hopes. The Korean won fell against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 63.47 points, or 2.14 percent, to close at 3,031.68 points. Trading volume was very high at about 1.5 billion shares worth around 26.8 trillion won ($24.6 billion), with gainers outnumbering losers 617 to 220. Institut

Local brokerages suggest Kospi’s yearly upper-end target band up to 3,500 points

The market watchdog Financial Supervisory Service will launch a three-week comprehensive inspection of Samsung Securities on Monday, officials said Thursday. The comprehensive inspection on the nation’s leading brokerage will be the first of its kind since April 2018, when the firm was under FSS inspection over a dividend fiasco in which it mistakenly paid stocks to employees as dividends instead of cash dividends. During the planned inspection, the financial authorities will mainly look

Bitcoin topped 40 million won ($36,800) per unit for the first time in South Korea on Thursday, a local cryptocurrency exchange said. Bitcoin was trading at 40.9 million won as of 8:58 a.m., up 6.94 percent from the previous day, according to local cryptocurrency exchange Bithumb. It just took 11 days for the cryptocurrency to top the 40 million-won mark after it broke the 30 million-won threshold on Dec. 27, 2020. The bitcoin price jumped 380 percent compared with a year earlier. The bull ru

South Korean stocks opened higher Thursday, tracking overnight Wall Street gains that were largely generated by the Democrats' control of the US Senate. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 44.46 points, or 1.5 percent, to 3,012.67 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Stocks gained ground amid expectations that the US political paradigm shift would help increase spending to stimulate the world's largest economy and benefit its export-driven trade partners. Market bellwe

Buoyed by the increasing participation of small investors and their growing clout in South Korea’s stock market, the nation’s main bourse reached a historic high on Wednesday, surpassing 3,000 points for the first time in the stock market’s 38-year history. The benchmark Kospi was launched by the nation’s sole bourse operator Korea Exchange on Jan. 4, 1983, three years after the base value of 100 was decided. It kicked off trading at 122.5 points with 328 listed firms on

An estimated 10 million retail investors, a weak dollar and hope for recovery pushed the benchmark Kospi above the 3,000-point threshold on Wednesday in what could be a new era for the local stock market. Analysts say many factors have driven the rally, including the weak dollar and anticipation for improved corporate earnings, but the biggest force may be legions of small investors, known locally as “ants.” The “ant warriors,” who purchased 60 trillion won ($52.22 bi

Nine shareholders of Doosan Fuel Cell Co. sold their combined 8.13 percent stake in the fuel cell maker via a block deal, the company said Wednesday. "The stake sale was a part of Doosan Group's self-rescue plan," a company official said by phone. The shareholders were reported to have raised around 274.5 billion won ($252.7 million) via the block deal. The shareholders include Park Jeong-won, chairman of cash-squeezed Doosan Group. After the sale, the combined stake in Doosan Fuel

South Korean retail investors, who have been on a buying spree in recent months, brought benchmark indexes to fresh highs during intraday trading Wednesday. The Kospi touched 3,000 points for the first time in the market’s 38-year history in the early morning session, stretching to as high as 3,027.16 points. But the Kospi pulled back to close at 2,968.21 points, down 22.36 points, or 0.8 percent, shy of the previous session‘s close. The Kospi had maintained a record run for six c

South Korea’s stock market rallied Tuesday as investor appetite for equities in one of the world’s fastest-growing bourses continued to gain momentum.  The Korea Exchange’s main board Kospi jumped 1.6 percent to end at 2,990.57 points Tuesday. While off to a muted start in the morning, the index shot up approximately 30 minutes before the market close. The 916 constituents’ combined market cap approached 2,060 trillion won ($1.9 trillion). The Kospi, as a result,

Analysts anticipate market kingpin’s market cap to soar up to W660tr

SK Biopharmaceuticals shares plummeted as much as 10 percent Monday as almost 5 million shares were released after a lock-up period. Shares in the pharmaceutical company declined 8.58 percent to close at 154,500 won ($142) after plunging as much as 10 percet during trade as the last batch of shares that were locked in after the initial public offering were freed to the market. The benchmark Kospi rose 2.47 percent to 2,944.45 points on Monday.  Over 4.9 million additional shares held by