Ahead of the Holiday, KOSPI Closes Up at 1947 on Foreign and Institutional Buying Pressure

Breaking the 1950 Mark for the First Time Since the COVID-19 Pandemic Declaration

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Minwoo Lee] Ahead of the holiday, the KOSPI index closed higher for the third consecutive day at the 1940 level. The buying momentum from foreigners and institutions seemed to be effective.

On the 29th, the KOSPI closed at 1947.56, up 0.70% (13.47 points) from the previous day. It started the day at 1943.34, up 0.48% from the previous close, and continued its upward trend. Around 10:30 a.m., it rose to 1957.51. This was the first time the KOSPI rose above the 1950 level since the World Health Organization (WHO) declared COVID-19 a pandemic on the 11th of last month.

In the securities market, foreigners and institutions showed strong buying momentum. Foreigners net purchased 233.7 billion KRW, and institutions net purchased 250.3 billion KRW, while individuals net sold 483.5 billion KRW.

Most sectors rose. The securities sector had the largest increase at 6.08%, followed by paper and wood (4.35%), steel and metals (2.90%), and banking (2.28%). On the other hand, three sectors fell: textiles and apparel (-1.02%), insurance (-0.37%), and pharmaceuticals (-0.30%).

Most of the top 10 market capitalization stocks also rose. LG Chem had the highest increase at 3.8%, followed by Samsung C&T (3.4%), Samsung SDI (2.3%), and LG Household & Health Care (1.0%). Conversely, Samsung Biologics (-1.1%), Samsung Electronics (-0.2%), and NAVER (-0.2%) declined.

The KOSDAQ closed at 645.18, up 0.04% (0.25 points) from the previous day. Individuals net purchased 61 billion KRW, while foreigners and institutions net sold 22 billion KRW and 38.3 billion KRW, respectively.

By sector, paper and wood (1.92%), non-metallic minerals (1.79%), semiconductors (1.49%), and finance (1.48%) rose. Meanwhile, computer services (-2.31%), internet (-2.02%), and software (-1.49%) declined.

Contrary to the KOSPI, most of the top 10 market capitalization stocks on the KOSDAQ fell. Pearl Abyss had the largest decline at 3.3%, followed by Hugel (-1.2%), Celltrion Pharm (-1.1%), and SK Materials (-0.6%). On the other hand, CJ ENM and Seegene rose by 2.8% and 0.1%, respectively.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.