Korean stocks join global rally on US tariff reprieve

South Korean stocks surged Thursday after US President Donald Trump unexpectedly paused planned tariffs, triggering trading halts on both the main and secondary boards amid a buying frenzy.

The benchmark Kospi soared 6.6 percent to close at 2293.70, marking its sharpest gain in over five years. The tech-laden Kosdaq also rose 5.97 percent in its biggest daily jump since Aug. 6 last year.

The relief rally came after Trump authorized a 90-day pause on his “reciprocal tariff” plans for all countries, including a 25 percent levy on imports from South Korea, but for China.

Wild swing started from the morning trade. The Kospi jumped more than 5 percent within the first five minutes of trading, prompting the Korea Exchange to impose a sidecar — a temporary five-minute program trading halt — on purchase orders for Kospi futures at 9:06 a.m.

The tech-heavy Kosdaq followed, with sidecars imposed on Kosdaq 150 futures and the Kosdaq 150 index at 10:46 a.m., suspending buy orders for five minutes.

It marked the first time in eight months that buy-side sidecars were triggered on both the Kospi and Kosdaq.

Volatility has gripped Korean markets since last week, with investors on edge over renewed tariff threats from the US president.

On April 3, Washington announced a wave of “reciprocal” tariffs on dozens of US trading partners that rattled global trade sentiment and sparked sharp selloffs across markets worldwide.

The Kospi has tumbled more than 8 percent over the past week, sinking below the 2,300 mark for the first time in five months. Panic selling on Monday triggered a sell-side sidecar on Kospi futures.

Much of Korea’s market turbulence has mirrored the moves of foreign investors. Overseas funds dumped nearly 7 trillion won ($4.8 billion) of Kospi shares and another 500 billion won of Kosdaq stocks in the days following the US tariff announcement.

Thursday marked a pivot, as foreign investors turned net buyers for the first time in two weeks, scooping up a net 328.6 billion won of Kospi shares. Institutions outpaced them, purchasing a net 686.8 billion won on the main board, while retail investors dumped a net 1.1 trillion won.

The Korean won strengthened against the US dollar, hovering around 1,460 won per greenback in afternoon trading. That marked a sharp rebound from Wednesday’s intraday low of 1,487.6 won — its weakest level in 16 years.

The shift in sentiment also rippled through the cryptocurrency market, with bitcoin jumping more than 8 percent to break above the $80,000 mark on global exchanges. In Korea, the token was trading at around 121 million won — up about 6 percent from the previous day’s close. Alternative coins showed stronger gains, with ethereum gaining 14 percent and XRP gaining 15 percent.

The rally in Seoul tracked a bullish surge on Wall Street, where the S&P 500 soared 9.5 percent and the tech-heavy Nasdaq vaulted 12.16 percent — their biggest single-day gains in more than two decades. It marked the third-largest gain on record for the S&P and the second-biggest for the Nasdaq.