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Kospi hits record high on Nvidia chip supply to Korean companies

Published: 31 Oct. 2025, 17:40 Updated: 31 Oct. 2025, 18:30

This photo taken Oct. 31 shows a dealing room of Hana Bank in central Seoul. [YONHAP]

Korean stocks closed up for the third consecutive day to set a fresh record high Friday, fueled by investors' optimism over U.S. tech giant Nvidia's artificial intelligence chip supply to Korean companies. The local currency was trading higher against the U.S. dollar.

After a choppy session, the Kospi added 20.61 points, or 0.5 percent, to close at 4,107.5.

Trade volume was moderate at 386.2 million shares worth 20.8 trillion won ($14.6 billion), with losers beating gainers 557 to 318.

Foreigners and individuals sold a net 598.8 billion won and 203.3 billion won worth of local shares, respectively, while institutions off-loaded a net 814.9 billion won.

The Kospi had opened lower, tracking declines in major U.S. technology stocks overnight, as Microsoft and Meta fell amid concerns over the costs of investing in artificial intelligence, while Nvidia slid 2 percent.

The Seoul index later turned bullish as Nvidia said it plans to deploy up to 260,000 graphics processing units (GPUs) in Korea in partnership with the government and major companies here, including Samsung Electronics and Hyundai Motor, to build large-scale AI factories in the country.

On Thursday, Nvidia Chief Executive Officer Jensen Huang met with Hyundai Motor Group Executive Chair Euisun Chung and Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Jae-yong in Seoul to discuss business cooperation.

"The expectation that the three companies' industrial cooperation plans could take concrete shape has boosted related sectors," said Lee Jae-won, an analyst at Shinhan Securities.

A screen in Hana Bank's trading room in central Seoul shows the Kospi on Oct. 31. [YONHAP]

Most large-cap shares traded mixed.

Top cap Samsung Electronics increased 3.27 percent to 107,500 won, and leading search engine giant Naver gained 4.74 percent to 267,500 won.

Carmakers also finished in positive territory, with local industry leader Hyundai Motor jumping 9.43 percent to 290,000 won and its sister company Kia moving up 3.18 percent to 119,900 won.

In contrast, No. 2 chipmaker SK hynix lost 1.58 percent to 559,000 won, and LG Energy Solution went down 2.77 percent to 473,000 won

The local currency was quoted at 1,424.7 won against the greenback at 3:30 p.m., down 0.13 percent from the previous session's 3:30 p.m. quote of 1,426.5 won.

Bond prices, which move inversely to yields, closed higher. The yield on three-year Treasurys went down 1.6 basis points to 2.716 percent, and the return on the benchmark five-year government bonds inched down 0.2 basis point to 2.855 percent.

Yonhap