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.