KOSPI Rebounds 22% as Investors Bet on Chipmakers
The South Korean stock market, represented by the KOSPI index, experienced an impressive turnaround on Friday, with a 22% rebound that stunned markets. The benchmark opened at 6,995.67 and briefly touched 7,010.86, its first move above 7,000 since July 24. Samsung Electronics gained about 1% early in the session while SK Hynix jumped more than 5%. This sudden increase leaves the KOSPI on course to snap seven consecutive weekly declines and outperform most regional peers.
The speed of the rebound is striking because the KOSPI was still deep in a rout only two weeks ago. The index has climbed almost 22% from its July 30 low, meeting the conventional threshold for a new bull market. Thursday alone brought a 3.6% gain, helped by renewed demand for Samsung and SK Hynix after investors reassessed the outlook for AI memory chips.
Macquarie analysts view much of July's decline as a positioning and fund-flow shock rather than a collapse in semiconductor fundamentals. Strong AI infrastructure demand and tight memory supply continue to support the earnings case for Korea's two largest chipmakers. Regulators have tightened access to single-stock leveraged ETFs, potentially reducing one source of extreme swings.
Lower US inflation data provided another catalyst, with both consumer and producer prices showing signs of slowing down. This reduced fears of an imminent Federal Reserve increase, which is particularly supportive for Korea because the KOSPI has become heavily exposed to high-growth semiconductor companies.