SK hynix surges as KOSPI extends fifth-day rally SEOUL, August 14 (AJP) - Seoul's memory trade ran into a fifth straight session Friday, with SK hynix jumping more than 5 percent after a U.S. flash memory maker's long-term margin targets pushed investors to reprice the storage cycle. The KOSPI traded at 6,944.14, up 1.9 percent, after pushing back above the 7,000 line early in the session and then slipping under it. The index added 130.80 points. Foreigners bought a net 572.8 billion won ($404.3 million) of Seoul sha August 14, 2026

KOSPI recovers above 6,800 as foreign buying fuels broader tech rally SEOUL, August 13 (AJP) - South Korean stocks jumped more than 3 percent on Thursday as foreign investors returned to the market, extending the rally for a fourth straight session, with an artificial intelligence (AI)-driven rebound spreading beyond Samsung Electronics and SK hynix to chip equipment makers and other technology shares. The benchmark KOSPI closed at 6,813.34, up 234.30 points or 3.56 percent from the previous session. The index climbed as high as 6,895.63 during the da August 13, 2026

Korea's penny stocks face delisting clock SEOUL, August 13 (AJP) — A little kindness can go a long way, but on South Korea's penny-stock boards this week, investors were wondering whether sympathy could go far enough to save a company from delisting. Online investment communities filled with anxious questions, angry recriminations and the occasional speculative wager after the Korea Exchange placed dozens of stocks under regulatory watch Wednesday in the first broad application of tougher rules aimed at pushing August 13, 2026

Satellite antenna maker jumps 41% in KOSDAQ debut SEOUL, August 13 (AJP) — Shares of South Korean satellite communications equipment maker KNS Inc. surged on their KOSDAQ debut Thursday, trading more than 40 percent above their initial public offering price. The stock was trading at 15,480 won ($10.93) as of 2:37 p.m., up 40.73 percent from its IPO price of 11,000 won. It more than doubled to an intraday high of 24,600 won before giving back some of the gains. The strong debut comes as the company expands from commercial August 13, 2026

KOSPI surges 4.1% , outperforms in Asia amid chip-led rally SEOUL, August 13 (AJP) - South Korean stocks surged Thursday morning, with the benchmark KOSPI jumping more than 4 percent above the 6,800 mark as foreign investors piled into semiconductor heavyweights, extending a rapid rebound from last month's market rout. The KOSPI stood at 6,847.66 as of 10:30 a.m., up 4.1 percent from the previous session. The index climbed as high as 6,895.63 after touching a low of 6,773.92, leaving an intraday trading range of 121.71 points. F August 13, 2026

LG Innotek enters MSCI Korea, four exit SEOUL, August 13 (AJP) —LG Innotek will enter the MSCI Korea Index at the end of this month as the country's sole addition in the global index provider's August review, setting up potential passive-fund buying as four Korean companies are pushed out. LG Innotek shares rose following the announcement, trading 3.81 percent higher at 626,000 won ($443) on Thursday morning. MSCI said LG Innotek will be added to its Korea Standard Index, while HLB, LG Display, POSCO Inte August 13, 2026

Shares of chip parts maker jump on strong Q2 earnings SEOUL, August 12 (AJP) - Shares of semiconductor parts maker Wonik QnC rose on Wednesday after it posted a more than twofold increase in second-quarter operating profit from a year earlier. Its shares closed 5.31 percent higher at 31,750 won (US$22.44). The gain came as consolidated operating profit jumped 119.1 percent from a year earlier to 30.9 billion won ($21.8 million) for the period between April and June, according to its preliminary earnings report released the same day. August 12, 2026

Pandemic hangover? Young Koreans opt solo as socializing gets pricey SEOUL, August 12 (AJP) - For Jin, a corporate worker in his 30s, some friendships have simply become too expensive to maintain. “I feel uncomfortable meeting friends who want to eat somewhere expensive every single time,” he said. “I also don’t like taking turns paying for meals. Splitting the bill is just easier.” HJ Kim, 32, has reached much the same conclusion. What bothers her is not merely the price of dinner, but the invisible accounting that c August 12, 2026

Demand for Korea's 1-yr central bank bond hits 29-mo low SEOUL, August 12 (AJP) - Demand for South Korea's one-year central bank bond fell to a 29-month-month low Wednesday as bids missed the planned issuance, signaling that the enlarged supply could not clear at the yield the Bank of Korea was prepared to pay. The weakness lay not in participation but in the size of the bids, as 15 institutions took part, one more than in July, even as their combined orders fell 41.2 percent. The BOK received 500 billion won in bids for 700 billio August 12, 2026

Shares of internet infrastructure firm fall despite strong Q2 earnings SEOUL, August 12 (AJP) - Shares of KOSDAQ-listed internet service provider KINX fell on Wednesday even after it posted a more than 50 percent jump in second-quarter operating profit. Its shares closed 6.99 percent lower at 151,600 won (US$107.14). The decline came despite a 51.15 percent jump in consolidated operating profit from a year earlier to 8.82 billion won ($6.2 million) for the period between April and June, according to its preliminary earnings report released the same day August 12, 2026