Seoul shares saw an increase on Friday morning, following Wall Street’s positive performance and hopeful expectations for talks between the United States and Iran after a two-week ceasefire deal in the Middle East conflict. The Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) climbed 103.21 points to 5,881.22 by 11:20 a.m.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose by 0.58 percent, and the Nasdaq Composite by 0.83 percent overnight, as reported by Yonhap news agency. Geopolitical progress in the Middle East, including Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s approval of direct talks with Lebanon to disarm Iran-backed Hezbollah militants, boosted investor sentiment.
Negotiations between the U.S. and Iran are set to begin soon to formalize the ceasefire terms. President Donald Trump expressed optimism about reaching an agreement while cautioning Tehran against disrupting shipping in the Strait of Hormuz. Institutional and foreign investors bought shares worth 87.3 billion won and 393.94 billion won, respectively, outweighing retail investors’ net selling of 631 billion won.
Major stocks like Samsung Electronics and SK hynix saw gains, with Samsung rising by 2.21 percent and SK hynix by 3.41 percent. Hyundai Motor and Hyundai Heavy Industries also experienced increases, while SK Innovation and LG Energy Solution faced declines. The local currency traded at 1,480.95 won against the dollar at 11:20 a.m., up 1.55 won from the previous session.
