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Nikkei 225 and South Korea’s KOSPI Close at Record Highs

Nikkei 225 and South Korea’s KOSPI Close at Record Highs

Japan’s Nikkei 225 and South Korea’s KOSPI both ended May 29 at all-time closing highs, with the KOSPI rising about 3.5% and the Nikkei posting a strong late-session gain.

Fact Check
The KOSPI portion of the claim is directly confirmed by asiae.co.kr, which reports a 3.55% gain (matching the ~3.5% claimed) and explicit all-time closing high status at 8,476.15. The Nikkei 225 portion is supported by the official Nikkei Indexes data showing the index well above 66,000 intraday and up ~1.86% at morning close, materially above the prior record close of ~65,158 set May 25, 2026. TradingKey corroborates record-territory trading on May 29. The claim's characterization of a 'strong late-session gain' for the Nikkei aligns with the intraday peak of 66,367.80.
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Summary

Japan’s Nikkei 225 and South Korea’s KOSPI both closed at record highs on May 29 in a strong session for Asian equities. The most complete closing data shows the Nikkei 225 rising 1,669.55 points, or 2.58%, to 66,362.67, while the KOSPI gained 289.64 points, or 3.54%, to 8,474.93. An earlier market update cited by Gate had reported the KOSPI at 8,400, up 2.64%, and the Nikkei 225 above 65,000 with a 0.72% daily gain, indicating the later figures reflect stronger closing levels. A separate source described the KOSPI as up 3.5% to a record close, which is broadly consistent with the 3.54% final figure. The move points to broad risk appetite across two of Asia’s leading stock benchmarks, though no specific catalyst was identified in the source topics.

Terms & Concepts
  • KOSPI: South Korea’s main stock market index, tracking the performance of major listed companies on the Korea Exchange.
  • Nikkei 225: A leading Japanese stock index made up of 225 prominent companies listed in Japan.
  • Record closing high: The highest level an index or asset has ever finished at by the end of a trading session.