Early Session Sees Widening Decline in KOSPI and KOSDAQ... Continued Net Selling by Foreigners

[Asia Economy Reporter Minji Lee] As foreign investors continue to withdraw from the domestic stock market, both the KOSPI and KOSDAQ indices are showing weakness. Amid increased market volatility due to global supply chain disruptions and the energy crisis, concerns over rising exchange rates are believed to have negatively impacted the indices.

At 9:09 a.m. on the 12th, the KOSPI stood at 2,932.54, down 0.80% (23.76 points) from the previous trading day. Earlier in the day, the index was at 2,950.22, down 0.21% (6.08 points) from the previous day. Regarding investor trends, foreigners and individuals sold stocks worth 42.2 billion KRW and 11 billion KRW respectively, while institutions alone purchased stocks worth 51.7 billion KRW.

Han Ji-young, a researcher at Kiwoom Securities, said, "The Korean stock market is expected to show a downward trend as it absorbs external uncertainties such as the US September employment shock and global inflation concerns." She added, "The reemergence of dollar strength due to expectations of the Federal Reserve's tightening stance is also expected to create a negative environment for foreign investor supply conditions, which are sensitive to exchange rate changes."

Looking at the top market capitalization stocks, Samsung Biologics (1.08%), LG Chem (1.83%), Kakao (0.43%), and Samsung SDI (0.29%) showed gains, while Samsung Electronics (-1.68%), SK Hynix (-1.60%), and NAVER (-1.03%) declined.

At the same time, the KOSDAQ index stood at 945.15, down 0.84% (7.96 points) from the previous trading day. Earlier in the day, the index was at 951.12, down 0.21% (1.99 points) from the previous day. Regarding investor trends, individuals alone purchased stocks worth 24.2 billion KRW, while institutions and foreigners sold stocks worth 4.5 billion KRW and 16.6 billion KRW respectively.

Among the top market capitalization stocks, Ecopro BM (1.54%), L&F (1.53%), and Wemade (1.23%) rose, while Celltrion Healthcare (-1.46%), Pearl Abyss (-1.14%), HLB (-2.31%), Kakao Games (-0.77%), and Celltrion Pharm (-1.44%) declined.

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