South Korean stocks jumped on Thursday, lifting emerging market equities as a global AI trade rebound pushed the Seoul KOSPI into a technical bull market. Jefferies strategist Mohit Kumar said he remains comfortable with an overweight in AI, citing a

2026-08-13

South Korean stocks jumped on Thursday, lifting emerging market equities as a global AI trade rebound pushed the Seoul KOSPI into a technical bull market. Jefferies strategist Mohit Kumar said he remains comfortable with an overweight in AI, citing a strong earnings season and no sign of a capex slowdown. The KOSPI rose 3.2% on Thursday, roughly 22% above its July 30 low. Large-cap memory makers Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix led gains, each up about 5%. Kumar warned geopolitics remains the main risk: the Strait of Hormuz remains closed — if the stalemate lasts weeks markets should digest it, but if it endures months markets would need to reprice.