South Korea's Kospi surges more than 7% in a powerful rebound two days after 'Black Monday'

South Korea's Kospi surged more than 7% on Wednesday, July 15, 2026, with intraday gains reaching about 8% and pushing past the 7,400 level. This time, as buying accelerated, a buy-side trading curb (sidecar) was triggered, just two days after the July 13 "Black Monday," when the index closed down 8.95% and a sell-side circuit breaker was set off.

Chipmakers led the rebound. SK Hynix rose about 11% (up to nearly 13% at one point) after its US-listed ADR jumped roughly 27% overnight on Wall Street, while Samsung Electronics also gained. The move was driven by softer-than-expected US June inflation data (an annual rate of 3.5% versus a 3.8% forecast), which trimmed bets on a Federal Reserve rate hike, along with heavy foreign buying and signs of strong AI-chip demand.

The Kospi's jump was part of a broader Asian rally: Japan's Nikkei 225 rose about 1.4% and the MSCI Asia Pacific equity gauge climbed around 1.6%. For Iranian traders, a return of risk appetite in global markets serves as a gauge of the overall risk mood and of behaviour in the crypto and tether market.