Synopsis
South Korean stocks surged on Friday, with the KOSPI jumping as much as 8.5%, buoyed by optimism that tensions in the Middle East could ease after U.S. President Donald Trump signaled a possible deal with Iran this weekend. The rally allowed the index to end a volatile week up 3.2%, recovering from the previous week’s 3.7% decline triggered by a selloff in AI and technology stocks.
IANSSouth Korean stocks surged on Friday, with the KOSPI jumping as much as 8.5%.
South Korean stocks organized a powerful rally on Friday, with the KOSPI up up to 8.5%, poised to end a volatile week on a high note. The improvement in confidence reflects growing optimism that tensions in the Middle East will ease after US President Donald Trump said a deal with Iran could be reached as early as this weekend.
The benchmark KOSPI index jumped 660 points, or 8.5%, to 8,424. The rise allowed the index to finish the week up 3.2%, reversing some of the damage caused the previous week, when it fell 3.7% amid a sharp global sell-off in AI and technology stocks.
Despite the turbulence, the KOSPI remains the best performing stock index in the world this year. The benchmark index has surged 94% so far in 2026, driven largely by a rally in semiconductor stocks linked to the artificial intelligence boom.
Technology heavyweights led Friday’s advance. Samsung Electronics climbed 12.21%, while rival SK Hynix gained 8.85%. Battery maker LG Energy Solution rose 6.11%. Automakers also joined the rally, with Hyundai Motor rising 6.03% and its subsidiary Kia Corp 4.81%. Steel producer POSCO Holdings gained 6.84%, while Samsung BioLogics edged up 1.01%.
The rebound came after Trump said Thursday that the United States and Iran could sign a peace deal as early as this weekend, a move that would reopen the Strait of Hormuz to shipping. Iran, however, said it had not yet made a final decision on any deal.
Trump also said discussions with Iran had been taken to the highest levels of Iranian leaders and received their approval. According to him, key elements of the proposed deal were agreed “both in concept and in fine detail” by parties including the United States, Israel, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Turkey, Pakistan, Bahrain, Kuwait, Jordan and Egypt, among others.
Friday’s rally capped a week marked by extreme volatility. KOSPI triggered “sidecar” trading restrictions in four sessions, including Friday. Earlier in the week, circuit breakers were activated for the third time this year and the ninth time on record.
Just days earlier, the world’s best-performing stock market had been caught in the global tech rout. AI and semiconductor stocks, the big winners of 2025 and 2026, came under intense pressure as investors questioned whether the recovery had been ahead of underlying fundamentals. The impact has been particularly severe in South Korea, one of the markets most exposed to the AI supply chain, with the index falling 8% in a single session this week.
This decline occurred despite strong long-term growth. Demand for AI infrastructure has increased over the past year, as technology companies around the world race to develop advanced AI models and expand their computing capacity. That has fueled strong demand for high-bandwidth memory chips and channeled investor interest toward South Korean chipmakers, which occupy a critical position in the global AI supply chain.
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