Seoul Shares End At New High, Landing Above 5,000, Despite Trump's Tariff Hike Threat

SEOUL, Jan 27 (Bernama-Yonhap) -- South Korean stocks finished at a new high Tuesday, landing above the 5,000-point mark for the first time, buoyed by recent gains in tech shares despite Trump's threat to raise tariffs on Korean imports, Yonhap News Agency reported.

The Korean won fell against the US dollar.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) jumped 135.26 points, or 2.73 per cent, to close at 5,084.85

The KOSPI has been enjoying decent gains this year, moving above the 5,000-point threshold since Thursday last week. It marked the first time for the index to close above the landmark level.

Trade volume was heavy at 472 million shares worth 28 trillion won (US$19.4 billion), with losers outpacing winners 472 to 410.

Foreigners bought a net 850 billion won, while retail investors sold a net 1 trillion won. Institutions purchased a net 232 billion won.

Seoul shares opened lower after US President Donald Trump said in a social media post that he's raising "reciprocal" tariffs and auto tariffs on South Korea to 25 per cent from 15 per cent, arguing that the South Korean legislature has not yet completed the domestic process to implement a bilateral trade deal.

Investors, however, brushed off rekindled tariff uncertainties, expecting the issue would be a short-term jitter rather than lead to a long-term correction.

Seoul's presidential office said it will convey its commitment to the United States to implementing its trade deal with Washington and respond calmly to the tariff announcement.

"As winning parliamentary approval (on the trade deal) is a matter of time, the hike in tariffs announced by Trump is considered a noise having a limited impact on the market," Han Ji-young, a researcher at Kiwoom Securities, said.

Semiconductor stocks closed sharply higher to set fresh highs, with top-cap Samsung Electronics rising 4.87 per cent to a record of 159,500 won and SK hynix climbing 8.7 per cent to an all-time high of 800,000 won.

Utility service providers closed bullish after the government said it will build two new nuclear reactors by 2038 as planned, with KEPCO rising 0.17 per cent to 60,500 won and Korea Gas advancing 0.37 per cent to 40,350 won.

SK Telecom shot up 12.3 per cent to 69,400 won following brokerage houses' rosy outlook over its earnings in 2026. KT added 2.94 per cent to 56,000 won.

Top carmaker Hyundai Motor slid 0.81 per cent to 488,500 won, and Kia decreased 1.1 per cent to 153,500 won.

The local currency was quoted at 1,446.2 won against the greenback at 3:30 p.m., down 5.6 won from the previous session.

Bond prices, which move inversely to yields, closed higher. The yield on three-year Treasurys fell 0.2 basis point to 3.094 per cent, and the return on the benchmark five-year government bonds shed 0.5 basis point to 3.377 per cent.

-- BERNAMA-YONHAP