Matthews Korea Active ETF

MKOR

Market cap $150M

MKOR hit a new 52-week high after surging 172% from its low, aided by South Korea's chip-driven rally.

South Korea's AI-fueled rally has made it the world's sixth-largest stock market, and the rally may be far from over. Investors may want to keep South Korea ETFs on their radar.

Earnings are the principal driver behind the breathtaking rallies achieved by Korean and Taiwanese benchmark indices in 2026, and Goldman Sachs thinks the market is still underestimating the longevity of the chip cycle.

The benchmark consumer-price index rose 3.1% from a year earlier in May, reflecting the effects of higher oil prices amid Middle East tensions and the won's weakness against the U.S. dollar.

Peter Kim, global investment strategist at KB Financial Group, says from a valuations and fundamentals perspective, we are "not even halfway through" the rally in South Korea's semiconductor and memory giants Samsung and SK Hynix. He also discusses the net-selling of the KOSPI index by foreign institutional investors, and the potential risks of labor unions action in the two companies.

South Korea is emerging as one of the strongest AI plays outside the United States. Semiconductor strength & AI optimism are driving KOSPI and South Korea ETFs.

News that Samsung management had managed to negotiate successfully with labor unions prompted a steepling rally in SOuth Korean stocks, augmented by the bullish comments from Nvidia's CEO about the AI industry

Investors are focusing on AI developments in North Asia. China is coming out of more than three years of deflation measured by the producer price index.

South Korea is often-overlooked but its stock market is the hottest in the world this year. The boom is led by chip powerhouses SK Hynix and Samsung Electronics.

South Korea ETFs surge as KOSPI tops 7,000 for the first time, driven by booming AI chip demand and gains in Samsung and SK Hynix.