Employees work in the dealing room at Hana Bank's headquarters in Seoul, Friday.
Yonhap KOSPI set another record by surpassing the 8,400 mark on Friday, fueled by easing geopolitical concerns and renewed momentum in artificial intelligence (AI)-related stocks following overnight gains on Wall Street.
The country's benchmark index opened 199.02 points, or 2.43 percent, higher than the previous session at 8,384.31, and maintained its upward momentum to close at 8,476.15, up 290.86 points, or 3.55 percent.
Market sentiment strengthened after media reports said the United States had finalized working-level discussions on a memorandum of understanding aimed at ending the conflict with Iran and had begun circulating a draft among allies, including Israel.
Hopes that ceasefire negotiations were nearing a final settlement also helped ease concerns over oil prices, which had recently weighed on global financial markets.
