(LEAD) KOSPI set for new peak amid continued Mideast crisis

▲ A trader works inside the dealing room in Hana Bank in central Seoul on April 17, 2026. (Yonhap)

(LEAD) stocks-new high

(LEAD) KOSPI set for new peak amid continued Mideast crisis

(ATTN: UPDATES figures in para 2; ADDS more details from para 4)

SEOUL, April 21 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's benchmark stock index breached a pre-Middle East-crisis high Tuesday and is poised to reach a new high.

After opening higher, the benchmark KOSPI hovered around the 6,350-point level at around 10:00 a.m., up over 2 percent from the previous session's close.

The previous high was recorded on Feb. 26, when the benchmark index closed at 6,307.27.

Seoul shares had been suffering extreme volatility since the onset of the war between the United States and Iran.

The country's benchmark index had once fallen by as much as 12 percent in a single trading day and risen by as much as 9 percent.

But the market appears to be becoming less sensitive to uncertainties surrounding the Strait of Hormuz and the Middle East crisis, said Han Ji-young, an analyst from Kiwoom Securities.

"Market volatility has eased to some degree and the global stock markets have been also roiled by developments in the Middle East crisis," the analyst said.

Market watchers also said foreign investors appear to be returning to the domestic stock market after offloading a record amount of 35 trillion won (US$23.8 billion) worth of local stocks last month.

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