TradingKey - On August 20, Japanese and South Korean stock markets rebounded noticeably in early morning trading, as an overnight rally in US stocks provided support for Asian markets. South Korea's benchmark KOSPI Index opened up 3.2% at 6,680.34 points, with gains later expanding to 3.71% to reach 6,711.14 points; Japan's Nikkei 225 Index (JPN225) opened 0.6% higher at 65,732.79 points, before extending gains to 1.25% at 66,145.98 points.
Source: TradingView
South Korean chip stocks became the primary driver of the market, with SK Hynix surging 8.60% to 1,629,000 won (about $1,174), and Samsung Electronics rising 5.25% to 260,500 won.
In the Japanese market, Kioxia rose 3.84% to 51,870 yen (about $328); SoftBank Group advanced 3.00% to 5,384 yen, as Japanese and South Korean tech stocks extended their overall rebound.
The focal point of the rally in South Korean equities came from SK Hynix's shareholder return plan. On August 19, the company announced that its board of directors had approved the buyback and cancellation of company stock worth 40 trillion won (about $28.3 billion), indicating management believes the current share price is below the fair value corresponding to the company's business competitiveness and cash-generation capability.
Meanwhile, the three major US stock indexes ended a three-consecutive-session losing streak overnight. The S&P 500 Index rose 0.21% to close at 7,707.98 points; the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.22% to 53,463.05 points; and the Nasdaq Composite Index added 0.16% to 26,331.09 points.
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