Kospi gains 1.32% as Trump's treasury pick sparks optimism over tariffs

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Kospi gains 1.32% as Trump's treasury pick sparks optimism over tariffs

Published: 25 Nov. 2024, 16:22

KIM JU-YEON
[email protected]

A screen in Hana Bank's trading room in central Seoul shows the Kospi closing at 2,534.34 points on Monday, up 1.32 percent, or 33.10 points, from the previous trading session. [YONHAP]

Shares rose more than 1.3 percent Monday as investors hunted for big-cap tech bargains amid hopes of a softer approach to tariffs by the incoming Donald Trump administration. The won fell in value against the dollar.

The Kospi added 33.1 points, or 1.32 percent, to close at 2,534.34. It marked the highest level since Nov. 8, when the index closed at 2,561.15.

Trade volume was heavy at 535.26 million shares worth 12.54 trillion won ($8.95 billion), with winners outnumbering losers 612 to 279.

The index opened higher and extended gains further as institutions purchased a net 453.88 billion won worth of shares, but individuals and foreigners sold a net 451.81 billion won and 75.25 billion won of shares, respectively.

Investors welcomed Trump's nomination of Scott Bessent as his treasury secretary, as the hedge fund manager is expected to take a more gradual approach to tariffs, according to experts.

"The recent fall was excessive despite uncertainties stemming from potential policy changes by the new U.S. administration," Shin Seung-jin, an analyst from Samsung Securities, said.

Samsung Electronics led the overall market gains by surging 3.39 percent to 57,900 won on news that Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang said the company is working "as fast as it can" to certify Samsung's AI memory chips.

SK hynix edged up 0.17 percent to 177,000 won.

Electric vehicle battery maker LG Energy Solution soared 3.58 percent to 419,500 won, and LG Chem advanced 2.85 percent to 306,500 won.

Carmakers traded mixed as Hyundai Motor rose 0.92 percent to 219,000 won, while its affiliate Kia shed 0.61 percent to 97,200 won.

Major bio shares gathered ground, with Samsung Biologics climbing 2.57 percent to 958,000 won and Celltrion increasing 1.9 percent to 176,800 won.

The local currency was trading at 1,402.2 won against the greenback at 3:30 p.m., up 0.4 won from the previous session.

Bond prices, which move inversely to yields, closed higher. The yield on three-year government bonds fell 4.3 basis points to 2.773 percent, and the return on the benchmark 10-year U.S. government bonds dropped 1.4 basis points to 4.407 percent.

BY KIM JU-YEON, YONHAP [[email protected]]