"Record-breaking plunge followed by a surprising 'big counterattack'! Two major chip giants retaliate and boost the Korean stock market by a staggering 12% in a single day."

Noticeably, after experiencing a record-breaking largest single-day drop, the South Korean stock market rebounded on Thursday, with buyers buying at the low re-entering the market, which had been severely hit by panic selling. As of the time of writing, the benchmark South Korean Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) surged by up to 12%, marking the largest intraday gain since October 2008, after the index recorded a similar drop on Wednesday. Leading the nation and outperforming globally since the beginning of last year, chip giants Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix both rose by over 13%. Thursday's trend marks a rapid turnaround in the situation, as Korean stocks had plunged to the brink of a bear market in just a few trading days. Following a global leading surge driven by artificial intelligence trading and corporate governance reforms, Korea was at the forefront of the global sell-off triggered by widespread risk aversion due to Middle East tensions. Gerald Gan, Chief Investment Officer of Reed Capital Partners, said: "This trend largely reflects the intervention of technical traders. The market has dropped nearly 20% from its peak in just a few days, making it one of the hardest-hit markets in Asia, with traders buying on dips." "It is unclear at this point whether this marks a genuine turning point for further gains or just a bear market rebound, especially as tensions in the Middle East continue to escalate." South Korean Stock Market Rebounds After Record Plunge Due to soaring futures at the opening, South Korean regulators briefly suspended algorithmic trading on the Kospi and Kosdaq markets. In early trading, foreign and individual investors were net buyers of Kospi stocks, while local institutions were selling. The earlier declines this week were driven by the surge in oil prices due to the Iran conflict, which in turn sparked concerns about inflation and potential growth disruptions. For South Korea, this exposed the risk of crowded trades rapidly unwinding - this could exacerbate sell-offs, especially when traders use borrowed funds for large bets. With the Middle East crisis potentially worsening, the market remains anxious. Despite experiencing a plunge, the Kospi index is still up over 30% this year. Investors are weighing whether the sharp volatility this week signals the end of an overheated rally, or marks the beginning of a more selective opportunity phase in the fourth-largest economy in Asia. Rob Li, Managing Partner at New York hedge fund Amont Partners, said, "These sell-offs, especially the ones in the past two days, are entirely driven by positioning, not fundamentals." Li believes that selectively buying South Korean stocks after the crash is a good opportunity. "In terms of buying companies, we want to be very precise," he said, adding that SK Hynix meets the standard considering its strong free cash flow generation capability and reasonable price.