Gate News message, April 16 — BlackRock, the world’s largest asset manager, upgraded U.S. stocks and emerging market equities to “overweight” this week, citing South Korea as a key driver of the emerging market upgrade. BlackRock’s Global Chief Investment Strategist Wei Li stated: “We are absolutely positive on South Korea stocks. South Korea is at the core of the technology supply chain and demonstrates strong growth momentum.” She highlighted robust demand for AI-related hardware as a major factor supporting the outlook.
The optimism is backed by surging profit expectations. South Korea’s KOSPI 200 index (the country’s benchmark equity index) showed a forward earnings growth rate of 43% at the start of 2026, which has now jumped to approximately 170%. Despite volatility from Middle East geopolitical tensions, the KOSPI has recovered previous losses and posted a year-to-date gain of 47%, outperforming most major global indices.
Domestic investor sentiment has strengthened as U.S.-Iran tensions eased. According to Korea Financial Investment Association data released on April 16, investors’ margin account balances reached 117.6724 trillion Korean won as of April 14, marking the highest level in three weeks and essentially returning to pre-conflict levels in late February. Since hitting a low on April 6, the margin balance surged over 10 trillion Korean won in just six trading days following ceasefire talks.
Margin trading volume (often called “leveraged stock trading”) climbed to 33.2824 trillion Korean won as of April 14, hitting an all-time high. In the KOSPI market alone, margin balances reached 23.406 trillion Korean won, a new record. Semiconductor stocks dominated inflows: Samsung Electronics’ margin balance stood at 3.4126 trillion Korean won, up 107% from year-end and 47% from pre-conflict levels. SK Hynix margin balances rose 30% to 2.2656 trillion Korean won. Samsung Electronics reported quarterly operating profit of 57 trillion Korean won on April 7, exceeding expectations and reinforcing investor confidence in tech fundamentals.
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