FX.co ★ KOSPI Gains on Wall Street Rally, Export Strength

On Monday, the benchmark KOSPI index climbed 0.80% to approximately 3,472, recuperating losses from the previous session as it mirrored Wall Street's rally. Domestically, technology and automobile stocks spearheaded the gains, with significant contributions from companies such as Samsung Electronics, which rose 3.89%, LG Electronics up by 2.15%, Hyundai Motor climbing 1.17%, and Kia Corporation increasing by 0.20%. However, SK Hynix and Hanwha Aerospace posed challenges to the index, declining by 1.70% and 1.37%, respectively. The positive momentum was further bolstered by improved investor sentiment following data showing that South Korea's exports had surged 13.5% year-on-year in the first 20 days of September, reaching US$40.12 billion. During the same period, imports increased by 9.9% to $38.22 billion, resulting in a trade surplus of $1.9 billion. This comes after a 1.3% rise in August exports, amounting to $58.4 billion, underpinned largely by robust semiconductor demand.