South Korean shares hit 3-week high as chipmakers jump

SAMSUNG BIOLOGICS

13/08/2026 02:51

KOSPI rises, foreigners net buyers
Korean won strengthens against dollar
South Korea benchmark bond yield rises
SEOUL, Aug 13 (Reuters) - Round-up of South Korean financial markets:
** South Korean shares rose on Thursday to hit their highest levels in three weeks, led by a jump in chipmakers, tracking overnight gains in U.S. AI and semiconductor stocks.
** The benchmark KOSPI .KS11 was up 245.50 points, or 3.73%, at 6,824.54 as of 0138 GMT, hitting its highest level since July 24. 
** Shares of chipmakers SK Hynix 000660.KS and Samsung Electronics 005930.KS rallied more than 7% and 5%, respectively. 
** A report that Singapore state investor Temasek plans to invest in the memory chipmakers also buoyed sentiment around the semiconductor sector.   
** The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq ended higher on Wednesday, lifted by upbeat quarterly results from CoreWeave and other AI infrastructure firms, while mild inflation data reinforced bets that the U.S. Federal Reserve will hold interest rates steady in September. .N  
** Among other South Korean index heavyweights, battery maker LG Energy Solution 373220.KS climbed 1.95%, while Hyundai Motor 005380.KS and sister automaker Kia Corp 000270.KS were up 2.93% and up 1.62%, respectively. 
** Steelmaker POSCO Holdings 005490.KS shed 0.08%, while drugmaker Samsung BioLogics 207940.KS rose 0.84%.
** Of the total 900 traded issues, 397 shares advanced, while 453 declined.
** Foreigners were net buyers of shares worth 1.1 trillion won ($778.53 million). 
** The won was quoted at 1,413.1 per dollar on the onshore settlement platform KRW=KFTC, 0.38% higher than its previous close at 1,418.5.
** In money and debt markets, September futures on three-year treasury bonds KTBc1 gained 0.04 point to 103.35.
** The most liquid three-year Korean treasury bond yield KR3YT=RR fell by 0.2 basis point to 3.778%, while the benchmark 10-year yield KR10YT=RR rose by 0.2 basis point to 4.293%.
($1 = 1,412.9200 won)

(Reporting by Jihoon Lee; Editing by Harikrishnan Nair)
((jihoon.lee@thomsonreuters.com;))