Korean stocks surged more than 4 percent, Tuesday, as easing Middle East tensions and an overnight rally in U.S. semiconductor shares revived risk appetite. The benchmark closed at 5,239.13, up 4.39 percent. It opened 4.55 percent higher, triggering a buy-side sidecar at 9:06 a.m, but pared some of the early gains. Foreign investors turned net buyers for the first time in eight trading sessions, purchasing a net 353.2 billion won ($264.3 million) of shares. Institutional investors also bought a net 498 billion won, while retail investors sold a net 1.34 trillion won. Semiconductor stocks helped lift the index. SK hynix surged 6.69 percent to close at 1,212,000 won, while Samsung Electronics climbed 4.74 percent to 198,900 won. Power equipment shares also rallied amid improving sentiment toward the artificial intelligence (AI) value chain, with Hyosung Heavy Industries, HD Hyundai Electric and LS Electric gaining 12.72 percent, 10.67 percent and 8.33 percent, respectively. U.S. President Donald Trump signaled that military action could be avoided if negotiations made progress, following re