Seoul stocks up 2 pct late Wed. morning on tech, auto gains

SEOUL, Feb. 25 (Yonhap) -- Seoul shares extended gains late Wednesday morning, trading above the 6,000 mark for the first time, as a sustained rally in technology stocks and a sharp advance in auto stocks offset lingering uncertainty over U.S. trade policy.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 115.66 points, or 1.94 percent, to 6,085.30 as of 11:20 a.m., set to extend its winning streak to a fifth day.

A day earlier, the index rose over 2 percent to close at an all-time high of 5,969.64.

Overnight, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.76 percent, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite advanced 1.04 percent.

Institutions and individuals bought a net 167.22 billion won (US$116 million) and 735.26 billion won worth of stocks, respectively, offsetting foreign selling valued at 982.14 billion won.

The index has sustained its upward momentum in recent weeks, surpassing the 5,000-point threshold for the first time on Jan. 27 and crossing 5,500 on Feb. 12. It moved above 5,800 on Friday.

Investors remain cautious over U.S. President Donald Trump's push to impose new tariffs after the Supreme Court struck down his original sweeping duties, analysts said.

Trump signed an executive order Friday (U.S. time) authorizing new 10 percent global tariffs that took effect Tuesday. He has also threatened to raise the rate to 15 percent, though no formal order has been issued.

In Seoul, technology and automobile stocks led the gains.

Market bellwether Samsung Electronics rose 1.75 percent, while chip giant SK hynix climbed 2.09 percent.

Top automaker Hyundai Motor jumped 9.35 percent, and its smaller affiliate Kia declined 3.85 percent.

Among decliners, defense firm Hanwha Aerospace fell 2.26 percent, and shipbuilder Hanwha Ocean declined 0.52 percent.

The Korean won was trading at 1,438.30 won against the U.S. dollar as of 11:20 a.m., up 4.2 won from the previous session.

kyongae.choi@yna.co.kr
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