Korea’s stock market rally is expected to continue, driven by heavily leveraged retail investors and a renewed wave of foreign net buying, as optimism grows over a global recovery in the semiconductor industry, data showed Friday. The rally is being driven mainly by semiconductor giants Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix, which are attracting both retail investors borrowing on margin and strong foreign net buying. According to the Financial Supervisory Service, margin loans linked to Samsung Electronics reached a record 1.8 trillion won ($1.35 billion). Margin balances are funds borrowed by investors against shares they have and are widely viewed as a barometer for speculative trading by retail investors. Margin loans have nearly doubled since October and are more than twice the level seen during the 2021 post-pandemic rally, when Samsung’s share price was also soaring. SK Hynix has seen a similar buildup. Margin loans linked to the chipmaker reached 1.15 trillion won, up sharply from 884.1 billion won at the end of last year. As for the broader market, total margin lending climbed to 27