(LEAD) Seoul shares close higher as AI woes ease amid Middle East uncertainties

SEOUL, June 11 (Yonhap) -- South Korean stocks ended higher Thursday, rebounding after a sharp fall earlier in the day, as major semiconductor shares gained ground after export data proved the sector's robust performance, while uncertainties over the U.S.-Iran war remained in place.

After choppy trading, the benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) added 33.13 points, or 0.43 percent, to close at 7,763.95. The index had started nearly 3 percent lower.

The secondary KOSDAQ surged 4.76 percent to end at 996.93, with the bourse operator having issued a sidecar for the index at around 1:58 p.m., halting program trading for five minutes.

The KOSPI's trade volume was moderate at 472.6 million shares worth 45.2 trillion won (US$29.5 billion), with winners outnumbering losers 575 to 318.

Retail investors pushed up the main index, purchasing 2.07 trillion won worth of local shares, while foreigners continued their sell-off for the 24th consecutive session, dumping a net 1.47 trillion won. Institutions unloaded 755.4 billion won.

A dealing room at Hana Bank in Seoul on June 11, 2026 (Yonhap)

The KOSPI had kicked off weak tracking an overnight tech slide on Wall Street, but turned higher as investors bet on the continued strong performance of the semiconductor sector after government data showed South Korea's chip exports more than tripled from a year earlier in the first 10 days of June to US$11 billion.

The country's overall exports for the period reached a new high of $28.6 billion, up 86 percent on-year.

The U.S. Consumer Price Index for May, key inflation data that drew investors' attention, was softer than expected, also helping soothe the market's risk-off sentiment, Kang Jin-hyuk, an analyst at Shinhan Securities, said.

On Wednesday (local time), the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed 1.87 percent lower, the S&P 500 fell 1.62 percent, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite shed 1.98 percent, as investors unloaded tech shares as woes brewed over the high valuation of artificial intelligence (AI) stocks.

AI chip giant Nvidia dipped 3.73 percent, Broadcom slid 5.12 percent, Super Micro Computer tumbled 28 percent, and AMD dropped 4.86 percent.

But uncertainties surrounding the Middle East crisis are still continuing, with the United States launching additional strikes against Iran, Kang added.

In Seoul, market top-cap Samsung Electronics started more than 3 percent lower but ended up only losing 1.16 percent to 299,000 won. Its chipmaking rival SK hynix turned higher, rising 2.59 percent to 2.1 million won.

Top automaker Hyundai Motor los