Kospi jumps 4% as Nvidia visit and oil slide lift chips

South Korea’s Kospi rose more than 4% to 7,814 on Tuesday, recovering from Monday’s low of 7,435 after a rebound in US technology stocks, a high-profile visit by Nvidia’s chief executive and a four-day fall in crude oil prices. Exchange-traded semiconductor funds rose roughly 5–6% on the session.

The index had fallen sharply on Monday amid a sell-off in global tech names including Broadcom, Intel and Nvidia. VanEck’s semiconductor ETF (SMH) gained about 5% and the iShares semiconductor ETF (SOXX) climbed about 6% on Tuesday, mirroring strength in US chip stocks and supporting local chipmakers.

During his visit to Seoul, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang urged investors to “buy the dip in tech stocks” and said Nvidia’s new Vera chips will use memory chips from SK Hynix. Market participants also pointed to recent developments in the artificial intelligence sector: OpenAI filed paperwork for an initial public offering that could value the company at more than $1 trillion, and Perplexity has indicated plans to go public after recent valuations in the $20 billion–$25 billion range.

Brent crude extended a four-day decline to about $93.41 a barrel, nearly 22% below this year’s high, after US officials urged Iran and Israel to cease firing following an exchange of strikes. Lower oil prices reduce import costs for South Korea, and traders cited easing fuel costs as supporting broader risk appetite.

Technical indicators showed Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix with Relative Strength Index readings near 76, above the commonly used overbought threshold of 70 and above their 50-day and 100-day exponential moving averages. The Kospi remained above key moving averages on daily charts; if it closes near current levels it would form a harami candlestick pattern. Market participants flagged KRW 8,500 as a nearby resistance level.

Official data showed the South Korean economy expanded 1.7% in the first quarter from the previous quarter, following a 0.1% contraction in the prior period, and grew 3.6% year-on-year compared with 1.6% previously. Flow data indicated foreign investors reduced exposure to Korean equities.