Kospi hits yet another all-time high after Biden inauguration

A screen at Hana Bank's dealing room in central Seoul shows the Kospi closing at an all-time high of 3,160.84 points, up 46.29 points, or 1.49 percent, from the previous trading day on Thursday. [NEWS1]

Stock hit an all-time high Thursday on strong foreign buying, buoyed by stimulus hopes related to the inauguration of U.S. President Joe Biden. The won rose against the dollar.

The benchmark Kospi rose 46.29 points, or 1.49 percent, to close at 3,160.84 points.

Trading volume was moderate at about 1.3 billion shares worth some 24.6 trillion won ($22.4 billion), with gainers outnumbering losers 602 to 246.

Foreigners bought a net 227 billion won, while retail investors sold a net 72 billion won. Institutions offloaded a net 143 billion won.

Stocks rose on expectations that the new U.S. administration's potential spending increase could spur global demand.

"Local stocks picked up after overnight global stock rallies that boosted investor sentiment, thanks to broad advances by auto, entertainment, telecommunications and retail," Hana Financial Investment researcher Im Seung-mi said.

Major blue chips in Seoul ended higher.

Samsung Electronics added 1.03 percent to 88,100 won, and chipmaker SK hynix advanced 0.77 percent to 131,500 won.

Pharmaceutical firm Samsung Biologics edged up 0.13 percent to 796,000 won, and Celltrion gained 0.32 percent to 312,000 won.

Internet portal giant Naver jumped 4.71 percent to 322,500 won, with its rival Kakao rising 2.25 percent to 454,000 won.

Online game maker NCSoft gained 0.52 percent to 970,000 won, while its rival Netmarble stayed flat at 121,000 won.

Chemical maker LG Chem lost 1.2 percent to 988,000 won, and rechargeable battery maker Samsung SDI inched up 0.13 percent to 745,000 won.

Cosmetics giant Amorepacific added 0.87 percent to 231,500 won and steelmaker Posco lost 0.92 percent to 269,500 won.

Hyundai Motor, the country's largest automaker, moved up 2.12 percent to 264,500 won, and its smaller affiliate Kia hiked 4 percent to 91,100 won. Auto parts maker Hyundai Mobis jumped 5.56 percent to 361,000 won.

The secondary Kosdaq also rose 3.74 points, or 0.38 percent, to close at 981.40.

The local currency closed at 1,098.2 won per dollar, down 2.1 won from the previous session's close.

Bond prices, which move inversely to yields, closed higher. The return on the three-year bond lost 0.6 basis points to close at 0.971 percent, and the return on the 10-year bond lost 1.1 basis points to close at 1.08 percent.

BY CHEA SARAH, YONHAP [chea.sarah@joongang.co.kr]