▲ Traders work inside the dealing room of Hana Bank in central Seoul on Aug. 27, 2026. (Yonhap)

SEOUL, Aug. 27 (Yonhap) -- Seoul stocks closed over 1 percent higher Thursday, boosted by better-than-expected earnings results from Nvidia, despite a back-to-back rate hike by the Bank of Korea (BOK). The Korean won rose against the U.S. dollar.

After opening over 2 percent higher, the benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) closed up 104.16 points, or 1.53 percent, at 6,912.37.

Investor sentiment remained solid as the U.S. chip giant's strong second-quarter earnings eased woes over the artificial intelligence (AI) boom and continued demand for semiconductors.

But the index trimmed earlier gains following the BOK's rate hike decision, which raised the country's base rate by a quarter percentage point to 3 percent.

Gov. Shin Hyun-song described the rate hike as a "preemptive, proactive and advanced" response to bring inflation and other financial risks under control, but said the South Korean economy maintains solid growth driven by strong semiconductor exports.

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