KOSPI hovers around the 2,900 mark as uncertainties cause market volatility

The benchmark KOSPI hovered around the 29-hundred mark yet again on Tuesday after being so close to breaking the 3-thousand mark.

Park Jun-han has the details.

South Korea's benchmark KOSPI ended trading on Tuesday at 2-thousand-950-point-3 points.

This marks a point-12 percent increase from Monday's market close.

The stocks that drove market momentum were South Korea's tech giants, Samsung Electronics and SK hynix.

As of 2:15 PM, Samsung Electronics — which makes up about 12.4% of the benchmark index — climbed 2.7% to 58-thousand-900 won, while SK hynix, accounting for around 6.5% of the market, briefly hit an all-time high of 260-thousand won before slipping to 250-thousand won.

"The index recently had already moved up while semiconductor stocks lagged.

But as AI demand continues to grow, a positive outlook for chip stocks is being rebuilt — particularly around SK hynix, which remains competitive in AI-related memory products, especially high-bandwidth memory."

With the KOSPI now at a critical turning point — shifting from the current 2,000 level toward the 3,000 mark — both domestic and global investors are closely monitoring the situation to see whether it can break through and sustain a position above 3,000.

Although South Korean stocks have gained momentum to bounce back from early April's yearly low, there are global uncertainties that could bring volatility to the market.

The Middle Eastern conflicts between Israel and Iran could significantly impact global stocks and oil prices if the situation escalates.

Moreover, on Wednesday, local time, the U.S. Federal Reserve will make a decision on the country's interest rate.

Although the market is expecting interest rates to remain unchanged, Fed Chair Jerome Powell's forecast about the country's economy could affect not only the U.S. stock markets but also South Korean stocks.

On the domestic front, as the Lee Jae-myung administration prepares a supplementary budget worth around 20 trillion won, or about 14.6 billion dollars,

the stock market could experience volatility depending on the scope, funding sources, and market expectations surrounding the plan.

Park Jun-han, Arirang News.