Semiconductor Uncertainty and COVID-19 Resurgence... KOSPI Declines

Fell to 3259 During Trading
KOSDAQ Also Declines... Dropped to 1044 Level

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Gong Byung-sun] The KOSPI is showing weakness due to instability in the semiconductor industry and the global resurgence of COVID-19. While foreigners and institutions are selling indiscriminately across both KOSPI and KOSDAQ, individual investors are buying.

As of 11:02 a.m. on the 16th, the KOSPI recorded 3,264.63, down 0.66% (21.59 points) from the previous trading day. Earlier that morning at 10:04 a.m., it had fallen to 3,259.32.

The domestic stock market appears to be shaken by concerns over the semiconductor industry. On the 15th (local time), TSMC, the world's largest semiconductor foundry, announced in its earnings report that the shortage of automotive semiconductors is expected to ease soon. Seo Sang-young, a researcher at Mirae Asset Securities, explained, "This signals the end of the favorable conditions enjoyed in the first half of this year," adding, "Investment sentiment toward the semiconductor sector has weakened, causing the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index to fall by 2.14%." Indeed, on this day, the KOSPI's electrical and electronics sector and the KOSDAQ's semiconductor sector indices, which include semiconductor companies, each showed declines in the 1% range.

The resurgence of COVID-19 is also a burden. As of 12:00 a.m. on the 16th, the number of new domestic COVID-19 cases was 1,536, marking over 1,500 cases for three consecutive days. The United States is also experiencing a resurgence of COVID-19. According to CNN on the 15th, in 35 out of 50 states, the number of new COVID-19 cases in the past week increased by more than 50% compared to the previous week. Consequently, stocks related to travel, leisure, consumption, and energy showed weakness.

The selling pressure from foreigners and institutions led to the index decline. Foreigners and institutions net sold 186.2 billion KRW and 360.5 billion KRW, respectively. Individuals net bought 591.2 billion KRW.

Most sectors declined. The machinery sector had the largest drop at 1.61%, followed by steel and metals (-1.32%), textiles and apparel (-1.31%), electrical and electronics (-1.19%), and transportation equipment (-1.08%). Meanwhile, medical precision (1.30%), paper and wood (1.00%), pharmaceuticals (0.46%), food and beverage (0.36%), and electricity and gas (0.02%) sectors rose.

Almost all of the top 10 stocks by market capitalization showed weakness. SK Hynix had the largest drop at 2.02%, followed by Kia (-1.59%), Hyundai Motor (-1.30%), Kakao (-1.25%), Samsung Electronics (-1.12%), Celltrion (-0.94%), and Samsung SDI (-0.27%). Samsung Biologics (2.63%), NAVER (0.89%), and LG Chem (0.49%) rose.

At the same time, the KOSDAQ recorded 1,047.71, down 0.63% (6.60 points) from the previous trading day. Earlier that morning at 10:09 a.m., it had fallen to 1,044.70.

Selling pressure from foreigners and institutions was strong. Foreigners and institutions net sold 76.2 billion KRW and 60.8 billion KRW, respectively. Individuals net bought 144.2 billion KRW.

Almost all sectors declined. The semiconductor sector had the largest drop at 1.33%, followed by finance (-1.30%), transportation equipment and parts (-1.30%), non-metallic minerals (-1.26%), and pharmaceuticals (-1.16%). On the upside were digital content (1.70%), other manufacturing (0.87%), IT software & services (0.58%), textiles and apparel (0.31%), and chemicals (0.30%).

Most of the top 10 stocks by market capitalization showed weakness. Seegene had the largest drop at 3.75%, followed by HL Biopharma (-3.36%), Celltrion Pharm (-1.40%), Celltrion Healthcare (-1.23%), CJ ENM (-0.78%), EcoPro BM (-0.56%), and SK Materials (-0.44%). Kakao Games (7.02%) and Pearl Abyss (2.80%) rose. Alteogen remained flat.

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