Retail money floods leveraged chip ETFs as Korea's chip rally finds new outlet SEOUL, May 28 (AJP) - South Korea's red-hot semiconductor rally spilled into the exchange-traded fund market Wednesday, as the country's first single-stock leveraged ETFs tied to Samsung Electronics and SK hynix drew explosive trading on their debut, giving retail investors a leveraged route into an already crowded chip trade. Sixteen leveraged and inverse ETFs linked to Samsung Electronics and SK hynix were listed simultaneously, generating a combined trading value of abo May 28, 2026

KOSPI closes at record high as Korea outperforms Asian markets SEOUL, May 27 (AJP) - South Korean KOSPI lead the gain in major Asian markets Wednesday, with the KOSPI closing at a fresh record high above the 8,200 level, driven by a concentrated rally in semiconductor and artificial intelligence-linked large-cap shares. The benchmark KOSPI rose 2.25 percent, or 181.19 points, to close at 8,228.70. The index opened higher and climbed as much as 5.09 percent to 8,457.09, crossing the 8,400 level for the first time, before paring gains. Elsew May 27, 2026

KOSPI rally cuts Korea's net external assets as foreign-held stocks surge SEOUL, May 27 (AJP) - South Korea’s external financial liabilities posted their fourth-largest quarterly increase on record in the first quarter, driven mainly by a sharp rise in the value of domestic stocks held by foreign investors. External financial liabilities refer to Korean assets owned by foreign investors, including local stocks and bonds. When the domestic stock market rises, the value of those foreign-held assets also increases, mechanically expanding Korea& May 27, 2026

AJP Watch: Liquidation frequency flags deep retail loss in Korea's stock craze SEOUL, May 27 (AJP) - KOSPI is on fire, surging more than 93 percent so far this year. But the bonanza has hardly been evenly shared. On Wednesday, decliners overwhelmed gainers 826 to 75 even as the benchmark index closed near a record 8,330, underscoring how narrowly concentrated the world's best-performing rally has become. The imbalance also helps explain why South Korean retail investors were forced to dump borrowed stocks on one out of every six trading days over the past May 27, 2026

Number of newborns in S. Korea reaches highest in seven years SEOUL, May 27 (AJP) - The number of newborns in South Korea in March rose above 25,000, marking the highest level for the month in seven years, government data showed Wednesday. The rebound in births has now extended into a second straight year, supported by a rising number of marriages and more births among women in their early and late 30s. According to South Korea’s monthly population data for March released by the Ministry of Data and Statistics, 25,200 babies were born May 27, 2026

Mirae Asset lifts target prices for Samsung and SK hynix, citing memory re-rating SEOUL, May 27 (AJP) - Mirae Asset Securities has raised its target prices for Samsung Electronics and SK hynix on Wednesday, arguing that South Korea's two memory makers remain steeply undervalued against global peers even after this year's rally, a call based on a re-rating of valuations rather than any upgrade to earnings forecasts. The brokerage lifted its target for Samsung Electronics to 550,000 won ($366.7) from 480,000 won, up 14.6 percent, and for SK hynix to 3.8 mil May 27, 2026

SK Square breaks clear of Hyundai as AI rally reshuffles Korea's top-five SEOUL, May 27 (AJP) - SK Square, SK Group's investment intermediate holding company, has surged past Hyundai Motor to become South Korea's third-most-valuable listed company, as a rally in artificial-intelligence shares reshapes the upper tier of the market beneath the two dominant chipmakers and rewards firms tied, directly or indirectly, to the semiconductor boom. As of Monday's close, SK Square ranked third at a market capitalization of 155.8 trillion won ($103.8 bill May 27, 2026

KOSPI outshines as Seoul hosts 2 $1 trillion stocks, Nikkei also at record highs SEOUL, May 27 (AJP) - South Korean and Japanese equities surged Wednesday while most other Asian markets moved sideways, highlighting the widening divergence in the region’s AI-driven rally. The KOSPI emerged as the standout performer, briefly topping the 8,400 level a day after entering the new four-digit era, as South Korea became home to two $1 trillion listed companies. As of 11:08 a.m., Seoul’s benchmark index was up 4.29 percent at 8,391.53, while the junior KOSD May 27, 2026

KOSPI extends record-setting rally, fueled by memory stocks SEOUL, May 27 (AJP) - South Korea’s main bourse briefly halted Wednesday after the benchmark index tracking the top 200 listed companies surged 5 percent, propelling the KOSPI past the 8,400 mark just a day after breaking into unprecedented four-digit territory. As of 9:30 a.m., the KOSPI had risen 3.63 percent to 8,355.81 after briefly testing above 8,400 shortly after the opening bell, as memory chip giants continued to shatter record highs. Samsung Electronics surged m May 27, 2026

Korea's May business sentiment rebounds sharply as fears over external shocks ease SEOUL, May 27 (AJP) - South Korea’s business sentiment improved sharply in May as still-strong exports and a record-setting stock market outweighed lingering concerns over oil prices, exchange rates and Middle East tensions, data showed Wednesday. According to the Bank of Korea, the composite business sentiment index (CBSI) for all industries rose to 98.9 in May from 94.9 in April, marking a 4.0-point increase and the highest level in nearly two years. While the index remain May 27, 2026