Nomura: "KOSPI Could Reach 8,000 in First Half of This Year"

On the 23rd, the KOSPI index rose 94.58 points from the previous trading day to surpass the 5,900 mark for the first time in history, and the domestic stock market status was displayed on the electronic board in the Hana Bank dealing room in Jung-gu, Seoul. That day, the won-dollar exchange rate opened at 1,443 won, down 3.6 won from the previous trading day. 2026.2.23 Kang Jinhyeong, Reporter

Nomura Securities has raised the upper end of its KOSPI target range for the first half of this year to 8,000.

In the "Korea Strategy" report released on the 23rd, Nomura Securities researcher Cindy Park said that the firm is revising up its KOSPI target range for the first half of this year to 7,500-8,000, reflecting profit expansion in the semiconductor sector.

This corresponds to applying an estimated 2026 price-to-earnings ratio (PER) of 12.0-13.0 times, a price-to-book value ratio (P/BV) of 2.1-2.2 times, and a return on equity (ROE) of 18.6%.

Park cited as reasons for the upward revision the super cycle in commodity memory and high-bandwidth memory (HBM), solid earnings in the artificial intelligence (AI) capital expenditure value chain and the defense industry segment, and a revaluation of the value chain of physical AI.

At the same time, they projected that expected earnings per share (EPS) for this year and next year will grow 129% and 25%, respectively, compared with the previous year.