Home > Business > Finance

Kospi breaks 5,200 on chip gains in historic morning trade

Published: 29 Jan. 2026, 09:44

A screen in Hana Bank's trading room in central Seoul shows the Kospi index on Jan. 29, breaking above the 5,200 mark for the first time during intraday trading. [YONHAP]

Korea’s benchmark Kospi index broke above the 5,200 mark for the first time during intraday trading on Thursday, powered by sharp gains in heavyweight chipmakers.

As of 9 a.m., the Kospi was up 1.08 percent at 5,226.44, after opening 1.29 percent higher at 5,237.42.

Foreign investors and institutions were net sellers, unloading a combined 237.7 billion won worth of shares. Individual investors stepped in as buyers, purchasing about 243 billion won.

Samsung Electronics and SK hynix led early gains. Samsung Electronics rose 1.85 percent to 165,400 won, while SK hynix jumped 4.16 percent to 876,000 won.

Samsung Electronics reported record quarterly results earlier in the day. The company said fourth-quarter revenue climbed 23 percent from a year earlier to 93.84 trillion won, while operating profit surged 209 percent to 20.07 trillion won. Both figures marked all-time quarterly highs. For 2025, Samsung posted revenue of 333.61 trillion won and operating profit of 43.6 trillion won.

SK hynix also posted blockbuster earnings after the market closed Wednesday. The chipmaker reported fourth-quarter revenue of 32.83 trillion won, up 66.1 percent from a year earlier, and operating profit of 19.17 trillion won, a 137.2 percent increase.

Annual revenue rose 46.8 percent to 97.15 trillion won, while operating profit more than doubled to 47.03 trillion won. The company said both quarterly and annual results set new records. It also announced plans to cancel 15.3 million treasury shares.

The tech-heavy Kosdaq index also rallied. It rose 2.97 percent to 1,167.21, after opening up 2.15 percent at 1,157.86.

Foreign and individual investors sold shares on the Kosdaq, while institutions bought a net 166.8 billion won.

BY CHO MUN-GYU [[email protected]]