Japan, South Korea Stocks Rise in Early Trade; Samsung, SK Hynix Soar, SoftBank, Kioxia Track Gains

TradingKey - Both the KOSPI and Nikkei 225 indexes opened higher, led by gains in Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix, with SoftBank and Kioxia following suit.

During the Asian session on June 30, both Japanese and South Korean stock markets opened higher. Specifically, South Korea's KOSPI opened high and moved higher, rising 1.18% to approach the 8,500-point mark, currently trading at 8,493.81 points; the Nikkei 225 index opened flat and rose 0.26% to return to the 70,000-point mark, currently trading at 70,521.6 points.

KOSPI Index Chart, Source: TradingView

In terms of individual stocks, heavyweights generally rebounded. Among them, SK Hynix rose 2.09% to trade at 2,683,000 KRW; Samsung Electronics gained 2.79% to trade at 332,000 KRW. Kioxia rose 1.01%, briefly testing the 90,000 JPY mark and currently trading at 89,340 JPY; SoftBank rose 1.39%, nearing the 6,000 JPY mark and currently trading at 5,976 JPY.

Samsung Electronics Price Chart, Source: TradingView

U.S. stocks staged a strong retaliatory rebound during overnight trading on June 29, leading to a rapid stabilization of overseas market sentiment. This directly eased the selling pressure from foreign capital in the Japanese and South Korean markets. Additionally, nearly 20 leading global semiconductor companies have finalized a new round of concentrated price adjustments and hikes starting July 1. This positive catalyst directly stimulated the Japanese and South Korean markets, both of which have a high concentration of tech and chip stocks.

Furthermore, Samsung Group formally confirmed a massive domestic investment plan of up to 2,655 trillion KRW, focusing on semiconductors, HBM4, advanced packaging, and AI data centers, while SK Hynix also announced an investment of 1,100 trillion KRW to expand its semiconductor supply. This record-breaking investment plan, supported by the South Korean government's comprehensive backing in cross-regional ultra-high-voltage power grids and tax incentives, attracted a massive influx of foreign capital and the "national team" into the tech sector at the market open.