KOSPI Slightly Firm... Starts at 2540 Level

KOSDAQ Hesitates... Shakes in the 840s with Increasing Losses

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[Asia Economy Reporter Minwoo Lee] Amid the rise in the U.S. stock market driven by positive news such as Moderna's plan to develop a new coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccine, the domestic stock market is showing mixed trends. While the KOSPI started with a slight gain, the KOSDAQ, which opened lower, appears to be widening its losses.

On the 17th, the KOSPI opened at 2,544.12, up 0.04% (1.09 points) from the previous day. It has maintained a slight upward trend since then. As of 9:17 a.m., it recorded 2,545.10, up 0.10% from the previous day.

Foreigners and individual investors showed strong buying momentum, with net purchases of 84.5 billion KRW and 77.3 billion KRW respectively. In contrast, institutional investors were net sellers, offloading 163.2 billion KRW.

Many sectors experienced gains. The electric and gas industry saw the largest increase at 1.20%, followed by transportation and warehousing (1.09%), steel and metals (1.04%), and banking (0.97%). On the other hand, paper and wood (-2.24%), medical precision (-1.40%), and machinery (-0.86%) declined.

Among the top 10 market capitalization stocks, gains and losses were mixed. Samsung SDI (2.0%), Hyundai Motor (1.4%), LG Chem (0.3%), and Samsung Biologics (0.1%) rose, while Celltrion (-1.7%), SK Hynix (-1.0%), Samsung Electronics (-0.9%), NAVER (-0.5%), and Kakao (-0.4%) fell. LG Household & Health Care remained flat.

Meanwhile, the KOSDAQ opened at 846.55, down 0.09% (0.78 points) from the previous day, and has been extending its losses. As of 9:17 a.m., it stood at 840.71, down 0.78% from the previous day.

Foreign and institutional selling appears to have driven the index's decline. Foreigners sold a net 17.5 billion KRW, and institutions sold 32.7 billion KRW. Conversely, individuals were net buyers with 56.5 billion KRW.

Most sectors declined. The transportation sector had the largest drop at -2.56%, followed by pharmaceuticals (-1.41%), publishing and media replication (-1.38%), food and tobacco (-1.32%), and textiles and apparel (-1.31%). Entertainment and culture (0.33%) and broadcasting services (0.31%) saw slight gains.

Most of the top 10 market capitalization stocks fell. Seegene's decline was the steepest at -5.5%, followed by Celltrion Pharm (-2.0%), Alteogen (-1.8%), SK Materials (-1.7%), Celltrion Healthcare (-1.1%), and HLB (-1.0%), all dropping more than 1%. Only EcoPro BM (1.5%) and CJ ENM (0.3%) rose.

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