Stocks up almost 1 percent as Philly chip index rebounds

Finance

Published: 19 Apr. 2022, 18:49

Stocks up almost 1 percent as Philly chip index rebounds

A screen in Hana Bank's trading room in central Seoul shows the Kospi closing at 2,718.89 points on Tuesday, up 25.68 points, or 0.95 percent, from the previous trading day. [YONHAP]

Stocks snapped a two-day losing streak and rebounded nearly 1 percent Tuesday as investors scooped up large-cap chipmakers. The won weakened against the dollar.

The benchmark Kospi increased 25.68 points, or 0.95 percent, to close at 2,718.89 points.

Around 1.2 billion shares worth some 9.6 trillion won ($7.8 billion) changed hands, with gainers far outnumbering losers 605 to 248.

Institutions purchased a net 360.8 billion won, while individuals and foreigners offloaded 341.5 billion won and 3.0 billion won, respectively.

Analysts said the Kospi's rebound was largely attributable to the advances of chipmaking heavyweights, spurred by a 2.36-percent overnight rally in the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index, a global gauge for the chip sector.

"The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index rebounded overnight, following a sharp decline since late March, which had a positive impact on investors' appetite for local chip shares," Daeshin Securities analyst Lee Kyung-min said.

Samsung Electronics went up 0.9 percent to 67,300 won, and battery maker LG Energy Solution increased 0.58 percent to 435,500 won.

SK hynix jumped 3.21 percent to 112,500 won, and LG Chem added 0.6 percent to 503,000 won.

Hyundai Motor went up 1.40 percent to 181,000, while Kia inched down 0.13 percent to 78,100 won.

Naver gained 1.79 percent to 312,000 won and Kakao went up 0.74 percent to 95,100 won.

SK bioscience added 1.11 percent to 136,500 won, and Celltrion increased 2.56 percent to 160,500 won.

KB Financial Group advanced 0.17 percent to 59,700 won.

The local currency closed at 1,236.9 won against the dollar, up 2.5 won from the previous session's close.

The Kosdaq climbed 13.33 points, or 1.45 percent, to close at 931.56 points.

Celltrion Healthcare jumped 2.67 percent to 61,500 won, and battery material supplier EcoPro BM increased 2.78 percent to 480,000 won. Kakao Games grew 2.17 percent to 65,900 won.

Bond prices, which move inversely to yields, closed lower. The yield on three-year government bonds advanced 0.7 basis points to 2.992 percent, and the yield on the benchmark 10-year government bond gained 3.2 basis points to 2.85 percent.

BY SHIN HA-NEE, YONHAP [shin.hanee@joongang.co.kr]