Hana Bank's trading room in Seoul's Jung-gu District on Dec. 30 is busy with activity on the year's final trading day. The benchmark KOSPI closed at 2,873.47, up 1.88% from the day before, and the tech-heavy KOSDAQ rose 1.15% to close at 968.42. (Yonhap News)

By Sarah Oqelee and Lee Jihae

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) on Dec. 30 set a record high on the year's final trading day. 

The KOSPI closed at 2,873.47, up 1.88% (52.96 points) from the day before and a leap of 30.8% (675.8) from 2,197.67 on the same day last year.

The index first reached the 2,800 level on Dec. 24 and set record highs for four straight days afterwards. It plummeted to 1,439.43 on March 19 as COVID-19 rattled the market with fear, but the government's pump priming policy, low interest rates and abundant liquidity helped the KOSPI sharply rebound.

Korea this year is expected to top the Group of 20 major economies in stock market growth after finishing 17th last year.

The tech-heavy secondary market KOSDAQ also set a record high by closing at 968.42, up 1.15% (11.01) from the day before and breaking its previous mark set on Dec. 21.

sarahoqelee@korea.kr