Seoul, June 25 (IANS) South Korean stocks extended their gains late on Thursday morning, driven by a semiconductor rally, as Micron Technology’s better-than-expected earnings erased concerns over artificial intelligence (AI) growth.

After opening 2.74 percent higher, the benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) extended gains, adding 414.55 points, or 4.89 percent, to 8,885.57 as of 11:20 am, reports Yonhap news agency.

Overnight, Wall Street closed mixed on concerns about overvaluation of artificial intelligence (AI)-related shares.

After the market closed, however, Micron, the world’s No. 3 memory chipmaker, released its quarterly earnings, sharply beating market expectations.

In Seoul, blue chip shares led the early run. Market bellwether Samsung Electronics jumped 4.77 percent, and chip giant SK hynix soared 9.61 percent.

Hanmi Semiconductor, a leading chip equipment maker, advanced 2.22 percent, and LG Electronics rose 0.24 percent.

Financial shares were also among the winners as KB Financial Group gained 1.91 percent and Samsung Life Insurance climbed 6.47 percent.

The Korean won was trading at 1,547.25 won against the U.S. dollar at 11:20 a.m., down 5.25 won from the previous session.

Meanwhile, the number of stock trading accounts in South Korea has reached a new high, thanks to a bull run led by major chipmakers despite some market gyrations, data showed on Thursday.

The number of trading accounts stood at 108.7 million as of Wednesday, up more than 10 million accounts from 98.28 million tallied at the end of last year, according to the data from the Korea Financial Investment Association (KOFIA).

The figure has been rising sharply this year as more retail investors purchased local heavyweight stocks, including Samsung Electronics Co. and SK hynix Inc.

Last year, the number of stock trading accounted increased by 11.7 million.

This month, the nation’s benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) surged past 9,000 points for the first time, on the back of a technology rally driven by artificial intelligence (AI) optimism.

—IANS

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