Seoul: South Korean stocks finished at a record peak of above 7,900 on Thursday as investors closely paid attention to the ongoing summit between the United States and China, and artificial intelligence (AI)-related stocks continued their rally.

According to Yonhap News Agency, after choppy trading, the benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) added 137.4 points, or 1.75 percent, to close at 7,981.41, just shy of the landmark 8,000-point mark. The index opened higher but dipped as low as 7,842.72 in early trading. But the KOSPI rebounded in afternoon trading, soaring as high as 7,991.04 at one point.

After taking a breather from a record-breaking run Tuesday, the KOSPI gained ground for the second consecutive day, inching closer toward the unprecedented 8,000-point level. The index was buoyed by expectations that U.S. President Donald Trump's ongoing visit to China will help ease tensions between the world's two superpowers over trade, Taiwan, and other sticky issues.

Overnight, major U.S. indexes also gained ground, driven up by tech gains, on news that chiefs from AI chip giant Nvidia, Tesla, Apple, and other major tech companies joined Trump on his state visit to Beijing. The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite closed 1.2 percent higher, and the S and P 500 added 0.58 percent, both reaching new highs, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 0.14 percent.

Concerns over a faster-than-expected rise in U.S. producer prices, a key gauge of inflation, in April and lingering woes over little progress in peace talks between the U.S. and Iran were not enough to cool down the stock market.