SEOUL, July 15 (Xinhua) -- South Korean stocks surged in early trading Wednesday, with the benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) reclaiming the 7,000-point mark after three trading sessions.
As of 9:25 a.m. local time, the KOSPI had jumped 468.66 points, or 6.83 percent, to 7,325.49.
The index opened 226.08 points, or 3.30 percent, higher at 7,082.91 and extended gains shortly after the opening bell.
A buy-side sidecar mechanism was activated at 9:06 a.m. due to the sharp rise, marking the 36th such activation this year.
The rally came as concerns over further U.S. interest rate hikes eased following softer-than-expected inflation data, while gains in semiconductor stocks on Wall Street helped revive investor sentiment.
The U.S. consumer price index rose 3.5 percent year on year in June, slowing from a 4.2-percent increase in May.
Memory chip shares posted strong gains. American depositary shares of SK Hynix surged 27.29 percent to their highest level since their listing on July 10, according to Yonhap news agency. ■
