In Seoul, the KOSPI rose 1.1 percent to 4,039.21 as of 10:08 a.m., recovering the 4,000 mark for the first time in nine sessions. The tech-heavy KOSDAQ added 0.3 percent to 930.74.
Among blue chips, Samsung Electronics advanced 1.9 percent to 105,350 won ($71), while SK hynix slipped 0.3 percent to 556,500 won. Except for SK hynix, all of the top 10 stocks by market capitalization traded higher.
Samsung C&T jumped 10 percent to 247,000 won, the biggest gainer among the top 50 firms. The rally followed news that Hong Ra-hee, widow of the late Samsung Group Chairman Lee Kun-hee, will donate her entire 1.06 percent stake in Samsung C&T to her son, Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Jae-yong.
After the share transfer, Lee’s stake in Samsung C&T will rise from 19.93 percent to 20.99 percent, while Hong’s holdings will drop to zero. Hong had inherited the stake in 2021 after her husband’s death, with the shares valued at roughly 400 billion won ($272 million).
Entertainment stocks were mixed: HYBE gained 0.2 percent to 298,500 won, YG Entertainment added 0.2 percent to 62,900 won, while JYP Entertainment edged down 0.2 percent to 68,500 won and SM Entertainment lost 1.1 percent to 105,700 won.
Overnight, U.S. stocks advanced as buying in tech shares lifted all three major indexes. The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index gained 1.8 percent as Nvidia rose 0.9 percent.
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 rose 0.7 percent to 49,664.16, though Toyota Motor shares fell 1.3 percent to 3,007 yen ($19).
Honda declined 0.4 percent to 1,508 yen, Sony dropped 0.8 percent to 4,406 yen and Nintendo slid 1.2 percent to 12,705 yen.
SoftBank gained 2.9 percent to 16,125 yen.
China’s Shanghai Composite slipped 0.2 percent to 3,889.45, and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index fell 0.8 percent to 25,889.32.
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