South Korean stocks ended 1.55 percent higher Monday on strong tech and auto shares, although the jump seems to be a moment in passing, analysts said. The South Korean won gained ground against the U.S. dollar.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) moved up 29.40 points to 1,930.06. Trading volume was moderate at 338.79 million shares worth 3.54 trillion won ($3.41 billion), with gainers beating decliners 555 to 256.

Analysts said the rise may be a temporary reaction to the continuous downtrend from recent weeks.

“The current gain should be regarded only as a short-term response to how much the share prices have been plunging lately,” said Kang Hyun-gie, an analyst at I’M Investment & Securities Co.

“At this point, we still cannot assume the rise as a sign of a rebound, and it would be strategically in investors’ favor if they wait for when the rate of increase is slower than that of falls,” Kang added.

Foreigners scooped up a net 27.94 billion won, and retail investors offloaded a net 154.23 billion won. Institutions bought more shares than they sold at 110 billion won.

Tech shares led the market’s rally, with leading Samsung Electronics adding 1.56 percent to 1,106,000 won and No. 2 LG Electronics going up 2.51 percent to 65,400 won. Chipmaker SK hynix increased 1.81 percent to 44,900 won on prospects that its third-quarter earnings will leap on strong chip prices.

The country’s top carmaker, Hyundai Motor and its sister affiliate, Kia Motors, increased 4.32 percent and 3.19 percent to 169,000 won and 55,000 won, respectively. Auto parts maker Hyundai Mobis gained 1.49 percent to 238,500 won.

Shares of firms that have posted better-than-expected results for the third quarter saw a jump in prices on the back of boosted investor sentiment.

Samsung Engineering stepped up 6.1 percent to 59,100 won after its third-quarter operating profit was in the black for four continuous quarters since the end of last year. Before, the industrial plant builder had been logging losses following overseas deals that did not pay enough to hold up earnings.

Samsung Heavy Industries also saw its share prices add 6.37 percent to 25,050 won after announcing third-quarter net profit of 172.3 billion won, up 2.2 percent on-year from 2013.

Shares of Samsung SDI, with its rosy outlooks for the third quarter, jumped 9.48 percent to 115,500 won. According to a poll by market researcher FnGuide, the battery manufacturer’s operating profit is forecast to skyrocket 98.2 percent in the July-September period compared to a year earlier.

The local currency ended at 1,059.60 won against the U.S. dollar, up 6.30 won from Friday’s close. (Yonhap)