▲ A dealing room of Hana Bank in Seoul on May 29, 2026 (Yonhap)

(LEAD) stocks-open

(LEAD) Seoul shares open strong on eased Middle East tensions

(ATTN: UPDATES with latest figures, more info in paras 2, 6-10; CHANGES photo)

SEOUL, May 29 (Yonhap) -- South Korean stocks opened sharply higher Friday following reports that the United States and Iran have reached an agreement to extend the current ceasefire.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) added 217 points, or 2.65 percent, to 8,402.29 in the first 15 minutes of trading.

The index fell 0.53 percent Thursday after closing over the 8,200-point level two days prior.

Investors were boosted by overnight reports that Washington and Tehran had agreed to a memorandum of understanding to extend a ceasefire for 60 days and resume talks on Iran's nuclear program.

On Wall Street, all three major indexes posted record closing highs driven by optimism in the Middle East. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.05 percent, the S&P 500 gained 0.58 percent, and the Nasdaq Composite added 0.91 percent.

In Seoul, semiconductor and auto shares led the strong opening.

Market bellwether Samsung Electronics advanced 4.34 percent, and its chipmaking rival SK hynix gained 3.06 percent.

Top carmaker Hyundai Motor vaulted 6.5 percent, and its auto parts affiliate Hyundai Mobis jumped 7 percent.

Internet giant Naver surged 9.02 percent, and its smaller rival Kakao moved up 6.23 percent.

The Korean won was trading at 1,498.45 won against the U.S. dollar at 9:15 a.m., up 4.85 won from the previous session.

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