▲ Workers at Hana Bank in central Seoul celebrate the benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index breaching the landmark 8,000 points on May 15, 2026. (Yonhap)

stocks-morning

KOSPI down over 3 pct late Fri. morning after topping historic 8,000 points

SEOUL, May 15 (Yonhap) -- South Korean stocks fell more than 3 percent late Friday morning, after briefly topping the landmark 8,000-point level, as investors cashed in gains amid woes over the U.S.-Israeli war against Iran.

After starting 0.37 percent lower, the benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) breached the unprecedented 8,000-point mark to rise as high as 8046.78 as of 9:28 a.m., but turned lower again.

The index had lost 297.26 points, or 3.72 percent, to 7,684.15 as of 11:20 a.m.

The sharp drop came as U.S. President Donald Trump, currently on a high-stakes state visit to China, told foreign news outlets that he will not be much more patient with Iran, urging Tehran to reach a peace deal with Washington.

Most large-cap tech shares were also losing ground on profit-taking sentiment brewed after the KOSPI hit the 8,000-milestone.

Also, investors remained worried over a looming strike by unionized workers at Samsung Electronics.

The tech giant's labor union rejected an offer for an additional round of negotiations with the management, vowing to proceed with its planned strike next week.

Market top-cap Samsung Electronics plunged 5.41 percent, and its chipmaking rival SK hynix shed 3.71 percent.

Artificial intelligence investment firm SK Square plummeted 4.7 percent, and power plant manufacturer Doosan Enerbility dipped 3.93 percent.

Leading battery maker LG Energy Solution lost 2.04 percent and major shipbuilder HD Hyundai Heavy dropped 3.43 percent.

Trading firm Samsung C&T nosedived 7.92 percent, and defense giant Hanwha Aerospace contracted 5.44 percent.

Top automaker Hyundai Motor and Samsung Electro-Mechanics were among the few gainers, rising 0.42 percent and 2.73 percent, respectively.

Overnight, the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed 0.75 percent higher, the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite gained 0.88 percent, and the S&P 500 went up 0.77 percent.

"Major U.S. indexes gained ground with the summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping broadly meeting market expectations," Seo Sang-young, an analyst at Mirae Asset Securities, said.

In their high-stakes meeting in Beijing on Thursday, the leaders of the world's two largest economies agreed that Iran can never have a nuclear weapon and the crucial Strait of Hormuz must remain open, according to a White House official.

The Korean won was trading at 1,498.9 won against the U.S. dollar at 11:20 a.m., down 7.9 won from the previous session.

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