Kospi surpasses Canadian exchange, now world's seventh-largest market just 10 days after passing Britain

Korea overtook Canada to become the world's seventh-largest stock market by capitalization after the Kospi surpassed the 7,000-point mark for the first time on Wednesday amid a massive rally led by semiconductor stocks.

Korea’s combined market capitalization of listed companies surged 71 percent this year to $4.59 trillion, overtaking Canada’s stock market, according to Bloomberg on Thursday.

Canada’s stock market capitalization rose just 7 percent during the same period to $4.5 trillion.

Korea’s stock market had already climbed to No. 8 globally after overtaking Britain on April 27, and then surpassing Canada in just 10 days.

Semiconductor stocks drove much of the rally. Shares of Samsung Electronics and SK hynix soared amid expectations of a prolonged so-called “supercycle” for memory chips, where demand outstrips supply. The optimism has pushed this year's Kospi gains to 75 percent.

Canada’s market, by contrast, saw more limited momentum because of its heavy concentration in resource and financial stocks. Canada's benchmark S&P/TSX Index posted annual gains of around 7 percent.

Korea’s strengthened global market position could continue for the time being if demand for AI continues to grow alongside expansion in the high bandwidth memory market, according to market experts.

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.

BY JEONG JAE-HONG [lee.jiwon10@joongang.co.kr]