Seoul shares extend gains late Thu. morning on chip rally

On Thursday morning, South Korean stocks continued their upward trajectory, powered by a surge in major chip manufacturing companies. The Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) surged 275.96 points, or 4.19 percent, bringing the index to 6,855 as of 11:20 a.m. Prior to the market opening, U.S. stocks tied to artificial intelligence technology had been performing well.

The S&P 500 gained 0.26 percent, narrowly missing a record high, while the Nasdaq composite increased by 0.54 percent. The Dow Jones Industrial Average, however, experienced a slight decline of 0.04 percent. Among South Korean companies, Samsung Electronics saw a significant rise of 5.48 percent, while its rival SK hynix also saw a sharp increase of 7.55 percent.

SK Square, the parent company of SK hynix, surged even more, with a gain of 8.98 percent. Samsung Electro-Mechanics, another electronics component affiliated with Samsung Electronics, also experienced a substantial rise of 12.73 percent. As of 11:20 a.m., the Korean won was trading at 1,415.1 won against the U.S. dollar, up 3.4 won from the end of the previous day's trading session.