Seoul shares open sharply higher on tech gains despite heightened Middle East tensions

Korean stocks commenced the trading day on a notably bullish note on Monday, buoyed by significant gains in the technology sector, despite escalating military tensions in the Middle East. The KOSPI index surged 222.40 points, marking a 3.33 percent increase, bringing the benchmark to 6,909.61 as of 9:15 a.m. Earlier in the day, tensions escalated between the United States and Iran, with Tehran reportedly striking three oil tankers operating on an unauthorized route through the Strait of Hormuz, alongside several vessels linked to the U.S., in response to the U.S. strikes on Iranian tankers.

The previous Friday saw U.S. stocks decline by 0.51 percent following robust job data, which stirred speculation about potential interest rate hikes by the Federal Reserve. Although the Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped by 0.51 percent and the Nasdaq Composite declined 0.29 percent, semiconductor shares exhibited a positive trend.

The PHLX semiconductor index experienced a 3.38 percent rise, driven by the announcement of OpenAI's innovative GPT-6 Astra. In Seoul, the rally was spearheaded by tech giants, with Samsung Electronics experiencing a 4.4 percent uptick and SK hynix soaring by 5.89 percent. Hanmi Semiconductor, a key player in chip manufacturing equipment, also witnessed a substantial 7.23 percent increase.