KOSPI Starts Slightly Higher... Turns Lower in Early Trading

Foreigners and Institutions Both Selling Off

Photo by Getty Images Bank

[Asia Economy Reporter Minwoo Lee] Both the KOSPI and KOSDAQ started with a slight upward trend but switched to a downward trend early in the trading session.

On the 15th, the KOSPI opened at 2763.65, up 0.05% (1.45 points) from the previous day. As of 9:22 a.m., it recorded 2739.14, down 0.83% compared to the previous close.

By investor type, individual investors were net buyers with 113.3 billion KRW, while foreigners and institutions were net sellers with 41.1 billion KRW and 72.3 billion KRW, respectively.

Many sectors declined. The construction sector had the largest drop at -1.10%. This was followed by non-metallic minerals (-0.98%), paper and wood (-0.84%), telecommunications (-0.46%), and transportation and warehousing (-0.29%). The electrical and electronics sector (0.16%) and chemicals (0.07%) rose.

Most of the top 10 market capitalization stocks fell. Celltrion had the largest drop at -2.8%. This was followed by Samsung Biologics (-1.2%), SK Hynix (-0.8%), Kia Motors (-0.7%), Hyundai Motor (-0.7%), Kakao (-0.6%), Samsung SDI (-0.5%), and Samsung Electronics (-0.2%). Only LG Chem rose by 0.3%.

The KOSDAQ also started with a slight upward trend. It opened at 930.73, up 0.13% (1.19 points) from the previous day. As of 9:22 a.m., it recorded 923.51, down 0.65% compared to the previous day.

Individual buying was also prominent in the KOSDAQ market. Individuals were net buyers with 22.6 billion KRW, while foreigners and institutions were net sellers with 8.9 billion KRW and 10.1 billion KRW, respectively.

More sectors rose than fell. Telecommunications equipment (1.52%), semiconductors (1.45%), and information devices (1.22%) were mainly strong. On the other hand, distribution (-1.97%), transportation (-1.21%), and textiles and apparel (-0.84%) declined.

However, among the top 10 market capitalization stocks, more sectors declined. Celltrion Healthcare had the largest drop at -3.2%. This was followed by Celltrion Pharm (-1.9%), Kakao Games (-1.4%), Alteogen (-1.1%), and Pearl Abyss (-0.7%). Meanwhile, Seegene (2.6%), KM Healthcare (1.9%), and SK Materials (1.1%) rose.

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