SK hynix surges over 4%, hits fresh intraday high

(Yonhap)

SK hynix Inc. rose more than 4 percent in early trading Monday, hitting a fresh intraday high.

The stock was trading at 1.346 million won ($914.71) as of 9:16 a.m., up 4.67 percent. It briefly climbed to 1.349 million won, surpassing its previous intraday record of 1.328 million won set on April 28, after opening at 1.339 million won.

Samsung Electronics was trading at 225,500 won, up 2.27 percent.

The gains appear to reflect a delayed reaction to strength in tech stocks on Wall Street while the Korean market was closed on Friday for the Labor Day holiday. The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index rose 2.26 percent Thursday and 0.87 percent Friday.

Earlier Monday, U.S. President Donald Trump announced the Project Freedom operation, under which the U.S. military will support the safe transit of merchant vessels through the Strait of Hormuz. However, the market impact appeared limited following reports that the U.S. military would not directly escort the ships.

On the Kospi, foreign and institutional investors were net buyers of 762.6 billion won and 429.5 billion won, respectively, while retail investors were net sellers of 1.16 trillion won, taking profits.

In the electronics sector, foreign and institutional investors posted net purchases of 839.5 billion won and 414.3 billion won, while retail investors recorded net sales of 1.24 trillion won.

Hyundai Motor Co. also rose Monday on expectations of benefiting from higher U.S. tariffs on European cars.

According to the Korea Exchange, Hyundai Motor was trading at 538,000 won as of 9:02 a.m., up 1.32 percent from the previous session, after U.S. President Donald Trump said tariffs on European cars would rise to 25 percent from 15 percent.

On Friday, local time, Trump wrote on a Truth Social post that the U.S. “will be increasing Tariffs charged to the European Union for Cars and Trucks” starting next week, “based on the fact the European Union is not complying with our full agreed to Trade Deal.”

“The change is unlikely to drive a sharp increase in demand given the relatively small share of European imports, but would improve price competitiveness, particularly for Hyundai Motor’s Genesis lineup and high-margin models such as the Palisade and Telluride,” said Kim Chang-ho, an analyst at Korea Investment & Securities Co.