South Korean stocks notch fourth weekly gain, end at record high

Published on 10/24/2025 at 03:27 am EDT

• KOSPI rises, foreigners net buyers
• Korean won strengthens against dollar
• South Korea benchmark bond yield rises

(Reuters) - Round-up of South Korean financial markets:
** South Korean shares logged a fourth weekly gain at a record high on Friday as a planned meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping, and a Washington-Seoul summit, raised hopes of easing trade tensions.
** The won strengthened, while the benchmark bond yield rose.
** The benchmark KOSPI ended up 96.03 points, or 2.50%, at 3,941.59. For the week, the index jumped 5.14%.
** Among index heavyweights, chipmaker Samsung Electronics rose 2.38%, while peer SK Hynix gained 6.58%. Battery maker LG Energy Solution climbed 9.94%.
** Hyundai Motor and sister automaker Kia Corp were up 0.20% and down 0.09%, respectively. Steelmaker POSCO Holdings added 5.68%, while drugmaker Samsung BioLogics rose 1.38%.
** Trump will meet Xi next week as part of a trip to Asia.
** A trade war simmering for months exploded into full view in early October, after Beijing dramatically expanded curbs on exports of rare earths, in response to a U.S. hike in the number of firms blocked from purchases of its technology.
** South Korea's finance ministry said on Friday the government will deploy measures to stabilize the forex market if needed, as volatility in the dollar-won market continues.
** Of the total 931 traded issues, 476 shares advanced, while 408 declined.
** Foreigners were net buyers of shares worth 575.5 billion won ($404.86 million).
** The won was quoted at 1,437.1 per dollar on the onshore settlement platform, 0.02% higher than its previous close at 1,437.4.
** In offshore trading, the won was quoted at 1,436.6 per dollar, down 0.0% on the day, while in non-deliverable forward trading its one-month contract was quoted at 1,434.2.
** The KOSPI has risen 64.27% so far this year.
($1 = 1,421.4800 won) (Reporting by Cynthia Kim; Editing by Rashmi Aich)

Sumber : Reuters