Three Major Tailwinds Support Kospi to Surpass 8,000 Points for Record High; JPMorgan Backs Samsung: Any Pullback Is a Buying Opportunity

Tradingkey - During the Asian early session on May 15, the KOSPI Index opened lower but trended higher, briefly surpassing the 8,000-point mark to hit a record high, reaching an intraday peak of 8,046.78 points. As of press time, the KOSPI Index turned lower by 0.4% to 7,949.71.

Market analysis suggests three major tailwinds supporting the upward trend in South Korean stocks: tech giants continue to ramp up capital expenditures, there remains significant room for growth in AI application penetration, and geopolitical factors alongside data sovereignty are driving non-U.S. nations to increase investment. Given the high concentration of AI-related industries among South Korean listed companies, these factors are expected to continue supporting the market.

On the other hand, corporate governance is poised to become the second major pillar of support by 2026, alongside earnings improvement. If companies continue to deliver on share buybacks and cancellations, dividend hikes, asset efficiency optimization, and transparency in information disclosure, the "Korea Discount" is expected to narrow further. This would drive the valuation recovery of low-P/B blue-chip stocks from temporary spikes toward a more stable medium-term trend, thereby strengthening the structural foundation for South Korean equities.

Finally, appreciation of the Korean Won will, on one hand, lower hedging costs for foreign investors, boosting the appeal of South Korean stocks for international capital allocation; on the other hand, a strengthening currency is often interpreted as a signal of warming risk appetite and capital inflows, helping to compress risk premiums and improve valuation benchmarks.

Among heavyweight stocks, Samsung Electronics rose 0.17% to 295,500 KRW, with a trading volume of 3.3 million shares.

In terms of news, South Korean media outlet MK reported yesterday that industry sources revealed Samsung Electronics officially began cutting production that day to prepare for a threatened full-scale strike by its labor union.

According to industry insiders, unlike other sectors, chipmakers must begin adjusting production lines at least a week before a strike starts, performing "soft-stop" preparatory work to avoid the massive scrapping of wafers in progress caused by sudden halts. The industry estimates that if a full-scale strike occurs, combined with pre-strike preparations and post-strike stabilization, a production disruption of over a month would be inevitable, with direct and indirect losses reaching 100 trillion KRW (approximately 460 billion RMB).

However, JPMorgan stated that the strong surge in memory prices is sufficient to offset most of the impact, and the "buy the dip" logic remains intact. The firm explicitly noted, "We continue to recommend buying on any share price pullbacks caused by strike issues," while maintaining an "Overweight" rating on Samsung Electronics.

SK Hynix rose 0.71% to 1.984 million KRW, with a trading volume of 743,900 shares. Its total market capitalization reached $904.66 billion, putting it just one step away from joining the trillion-dollar club.

Analysts pointed out that compared to the multi-billion-dollar AI capital expenditures often seen from Silicon Valley tech companies, the three major chipmakers at the core of the Asian supply chain (TSMC, Samsung, and SK Hynix) present a starkly different picture; their record-breaking profitability has already established them as important safe havens for the global market.