South Korean stocks are expected to make a modest upswing next week following relief rallies in recent sessions amid optimism over decent corporate performances this year, analysts said Saturday.

    The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) closed at 2,177.73 points Friday, up 3.35 percent from a week earlier, to reach its highest point since Oct. 10, 2018.

 

    The index started the week on a shaky note as investors took a breather on concerns over the slowdown of the Chinese economy and its impact on the rest of the world.

    But signs of progress in the trade dispute between Washington and Beijing whetted investors' appetite for risk, and several positive assessments by experts on the semiconductor market helped them brush off concerns over weaker-than-expected quarterly corporate earnings, according to the analysts.

    Foreigners, in particular, helped lift the index by scooping up tech blue chips. Top-cap Samsung Electronics spiked 5.79 percent this week to 44,750 won, and No. 2 chipmaker SK hynix jumped 15.48 percent to 74,600 won.

    In the coming week, such a positive flow is forecast to continue, experts said.

    "The US central bank is expected to make market-friendly gestures in the upcoming meeting later next week, and high-level talks between the US and China also raise hope for progress in the trade war," said Kim Byung-yeon, an analyst at NH Investment & Securities.

    "But the market could experience volatility amid lingering issues such as the shutdown of the US government," he added. (Yonhap)