South Korea's benchmark KOSPI index closed at a record 5,170.81 points on Wednesday, January 28, 2026, marking the second consecutive day above the historic 5,000 threshold. The index gained 1.69 percent from the previous session, extending a remarkable rally that has seen it climb more than 22 percent over the past month and over 105 percent compared to a year ago.
The milestone represents a watershed moment for Asia's fourth-largest economy, coming 46 years after the KOSPI was established with a baseline of 100 points on January 4, 1980. The index first breached 5,000 during intraday trading on January 22 but only managed to close above that level for the first time on January 27, when it ended at 5,084.85 points with a gain of 2.73 percent.
Semiconductor giants led the charge higher, with SK Hynix surging past the 800,000 won mark for the first time in its history following reports of an expanded supply agreement with Microsoft for artificial intelligence chips. Samsung Electronics also posted strong gains, climbing nearly five percent to close at 159,500 won. The tech-heavy Kosdaq secondary index jumped 4.7 percent to 1,133.52 points.
The rally came despite U.S. President Donald Trump announcing plans to raise blanket tariffs on Korean imports to 25 percent, up from the 15 percent rate that had been in place since July 2025. Analysts noted that Trump later struck a more conciliatory tone regarding trade negotiations with Seoul, which helped ease investor concerns. Foreign and institutional investors were net buyers of more than 850 billion won and 230 billion won respectively.
South Korean officials have attributed part of the rally to ongoing efforts to address the so-called Korea discount, where local stocks have historically traded at lower valuations than global peers. President Lee Jae Myung emphasized that properly valuing Korean companies would increase the wealth of all citizens. The ruling Democratic Party is fast-tracking amendments to the Commercial Act that would compel companies to retire treasury shares after buybacks.
Goldman Sachs recently raised its KOSPI target to 5,700 points, driven by earnings upgrades rather than price-to-earnings multiple expansion. Analysts are watching closely as Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix are scheduled to report quarterly earnings on January 29. The semiconductor sector has been buoyed by surging global demand for AI chips, with SK Hynix shares now up 23 percent year to date.
Market observers say the sustained rally reflects growing confidence in Korean technology leadership and structural reforms aimed at improving corporate governance. However, some caution remains warranted given ongoing trade tensions with Washington and uncertainty about the Federal Reserve's monetary policy trajectory in the coming months.
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