South Korea’s stock market KOSPI saw a record 18% surge on Friday. This is the largest single-day percentage gain recorded in KOSPI’s history. This spectacular jump was recorded due to the ongoing recovery in technology stocks at a global level and investors’ renewed interest in companies related to Artificial Intelligence (AI). Before this, the market had witnessed a period of heavy selling in tech stocks for three days. Chipmaker Companies Took Control of the Market Semiconductor (chip) manufacturing companies made the biggest contribution to this market surge. Shares of South Korean giants SK Hynix and Samsung Electronics surged by more than 23% each. Additionally, shares of Taiwan’s leading chip manufacturer, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC), also rose by up to 10%. These three companies emerged as the biggest contributors to the MSCI Asia Pacific Equities Index. Positive Trend Also Seen in Emerging Markets and Currency The impact of this rally in Asian markets was clearly visible on emerging markets as well. The MSCI index of emerging market equities rose by 6.1%, which is its biggest one-day gain in the last 6 years. With this gain, the index’s weekly rally has increased to 1.8%. Meanwhile, an index measuring emerging market currencies also registered a gain of up to 0.3%. Strong Global Cues from Wall Street This surge in Asian stock markets was observed after a record jump in chip stocks on Wall Street, the US stock market, on Thursday. Such a large surge in chip stocks was recorded in the US market after more than a year. Tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 Futures are also showing further signs of acceleration. The Nasdaq has broken its six-day losing streak. Mixed Impact of Tech Companies’ Quarterly Results The results of major tech companies also set the market mood. E-commerce giant Amazon’s shares jumped up to 9.5% in after-hours trading, driven by the company’s strong quarterly results. On the other hand, shares of tech company Apple recorded a decline of more than 6%. Apple’s sales forecast was affected due to supply chain issues. Investors Get Relief After 3 Days of Selling This sudden recovery in chip stocks has brought great relief to investors. Earlier this week, the market had recorded a significant decline. Among investors, there was a growing concern whether the billions of dollars being heavily invested in artificial intelligence would yield proportionate returns for companies. Eyes on US Federal Reserve and Global Economy The policy decision process of the new Chair of the US central bank ‘Federal Reserve’, Kevin Warsh, has now been completed. Thus, investors’ full attention is now focused on whether this market rally can be sustained amidst the mixed results of tech giant companies. Along with this, global markets are also assessing the strength of the US economy. The more than 20 percent surge in crude oil prices during the current month poses a risk of inflation flaring up. However, despite the ongoing tension in the Middle East, there are signs of improvement in shipping movement from Hormuz, which led to a slight softening in Brent crude prices on Friday. What are Kospi and MSCI Index? Post navigation ‘One-man’ companies are growing worldwide:No boss, no team, youth are building multi-crore companies alone with AI
