Korea's KOSPI Stages Record Swing, Rebounds 5.76% to Reclaim 8,000

The KOSPI closed up 5.76% on Friday, reclaiming the 8,000 level a single trading day after a sharp sell-off, in a session that produced one of the widest intraday trading ranges in the index’s history.

A Volatile Open Gives Way to a Chip-Led Rally

Trading began under pressure. Foreign investors extended a selling streak into an 11th consecutive session, pulling the index down to the 7,400 range in early trade. The pattern shifted at midday as institutional buying took over, lifting the KOSPI back above 7,800. From there, gains accelerated through the afternoon: the index pushed through 8,000 intraday on a 4%-plus advance before extending further as large-cap semiconductor names took the lead.

Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix, the two heavyweights that carry outsized influence over the benchmark, each surged more than 8% intraday. Their rebound was the primary force behind the index’s move from a sub-7,500 morning low to a close above 8,000 — a swing that market data show ranks as the second-widest intraday range on record for the KOSPI.

Why the Reversal Matters

The scale of the move stands out against the prior session’s decline, which had erased ground the market had built up only days earlier. That the index recovered the lost territory within 24 hours — and did so despite persistent foreign outflows — points to a shift in the balance of buying power toward domestic institutions, at least for this session. Whether that support continues will likely hinge on whether the 11-day run of foreign selling breaks, and on whether the chip-sector strength that drove Friday’s rebound extends into the following week.

For now, the closing figures put the KOSPI decisively back above the 8,000 threshold it had briefly held earlier in the week, with the day’s volatility underscoring how concentrated the index’s swings have become around movements in its two largest semiconductor constituents.