The repurchase plan comes amid an ongoing drive by South Korea’s government and market regulators to boost the low valuations of the nation’s stocks. Samsung launched buybacks of 9.3 trillion won in 2017 and 11.3 trillion won in 2015. BLOOMBERG

Shares of Samsung Electronics jumped on Monday after the company unveiled a surprise plan to buy back about 10 trillion South Korean won ($7.19 billion) worth of its own stock over the next 12 months.

Samsung Electronics Co. shares surged Monday after South Korea’s biggest company announced a surprise plan late Friday to buy back about 10 trillion won ($7.2 billion) of its own stock over the next year.

The South Korean tech giant's stock rose more than 7% in Seoul, after shares had already surged 7.21% on Friday, following news that the company reached a preliminary agreement with its largest workers union,

Analysts expect the buyback to provide a short-term catalyst to the stock, which slumped more than 30% this year before Monday’s jump.