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| ▲ Jeong Eun-bo, the chairman of the Korea Exchange, speaks at a press conference at the bourse operator's building in western Seoul on Feb. 5, 2026. (Yonhap) |
(LEAD) KRX-business strategy
(LEAD) KOSPI can easily top 6,000 points; 24-hour trading crucial: KRX chief
(ATTN: CHANGES headline, lead, photo; UPDATES with quotes from the KRX chairman, additional info throughout)
By Kang Jae-eun
SEOUL, Feb. 5 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's benchmark stock index is capable of surpassing the 6,000 mark, the head of the county's main bourse operator argued Thursday, vowing efforts to further the country's stock market, including an ultimate extension of trading hours to 24.
"I think our market has the capability to surpass at least 6,000 points, when compared to other global markets. I believe there will not be any major issue in achieving such a goal," Jeong Eun-bo, chairman of the Korea Exchange (KRX), said at the bourse operator's first press conference of the year, referring to the benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI).
Jeong's remarks come after the KOSPI enjoyed a world-beating rally, rising more than 75 percent in 2025 alone, on sharp advances in semiconductor shares.
The index closed at 5,163.57 Thursday, down 207.53 points, or 3.86 percent, from the previous session's close.
To help enhance the country's capital market, the KRX plans to push forward with various capital market-boosting efforts, with the first step being the introduction of a pre- and after-hours market in June. The bourse operator will gradually allow around-the-clock trading on weekdays, in line with other global exchanges, according to Jeong.
"The only way we can create additional liquidity is by either having more local market participants invest in the local market through productive finance or finding ways to attract capital from foreign investors," he told the conference.
"A gradual extension of trading hours is necessary to bring in liquidity from overseas."
Leveraged exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and other investment products, such as weekly options, will be newly introduced to the market.
Efforts to include the local stock market in the Morgan Stanley Capital International (MSCI) index will also be under way, including the early enforcement of English-language regulatory filings for KOSPI-listed companies, according to Jeong.
He stressed the importance of expelling distressed businesses, otherwise known as "zombie companies," criticizing them as the culprits behind what he called an "undervaluation" of the smaller KOSDAQ market.
"Many new companies have been listed on the KOSDAQ, but an array of them have failed to come up with a viable business model, eventually limiting the rise in the smaller index," Jeong said. "We need to expel such insolvent companies in order to gain trust from investors."
As part of such an initiative, the bourse operator will tighten delisting rules and reinforce related personnel so that marginal companies can be quickly removed from the market.
Regarding efforts to prevent unfair trading, the KRX said it will advance market monitoring systems utilizing artificial intelligence (AI) technologies.
On the government's productive finance initiative, the KRX will improve systems to promote the public listing of companies in advanced technologies, support the introduction of business development companies (BDC), and strengthen its incubating role for non-listed companies.
"Our capital market is at a crossroads of making a huge leap, and the KRX will focus all our capabilities for the advancement of the local capital market as we head toward the 'Korea Premium'," Jeong said.
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