"Rushing to Subscribe to LG Energy Solution IPO" KOSPI Left Out... Ecopro BM Becomes No.1 in KOSDAQ Market Cap

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Seon-ae] On the 18th, the domestic stock market started higher amid the perception that the recent sharp drop below the 2900 level was excessive, but it ultimately closed lower as supply and demand concerns intensified during the session. The U.S. 10-year Treasury yield surpassing 1.8% has been weighing on global markets, and ahead of LG Energy Solution's IPO, anxiety grew due to a supply-demand gap.

On the 18th, the KOSPI closed at 2,864.24, down 25.86 points (0.89%) from the previous day. Having already fallen below the 2900 level the day before, the KOSPI showed weakness for four consecutive trading days since the 13th. The KOSPI opened at 2,898.98, up 8.88 points (0.31%) from the previous day, but institutional investors who had been buying in the morning switched to selling, and foreign investors also took a cautious stance, leading to a wider decline in the afternoon.

In the KOSPI market, institutions sold shares worth 225.9 billion KRW. In contrast, individual and foreign investors recorded net purchases of 206.9 billion KRW and 5.2 billion KRW, respectively.

Most of the large-cap companies closed lower. Except for Samsung SDI, which rose 5.30% on expectations for the secondary battery materials market, Samsung Electronics (-0.65%), SK Hynix (-0.39%), Naver (-1.60%), and Samsung Biologics (-2.42%) all declined.

By sector, construction fell sharply by 4.31%, while machinery (-2.70%), pharmaceuticals (-2.31%), and steel and metals (-1.72%) also deepened losses. On the other hand, medical precision (3.31%) and telecommunications (0.93%) closed higher.

The start of LG Energy Solution's general public subscription weighed on the index. On this day, KOSPI trading volume was 17.3259 trillion KRW, about 1 trillion KRW less than the previous day's 18.2527 trillion KRW. This amount is 15.7% lower compared to last week's average daily trading volume of 20.567 trillion KRW. Meanwhile, as of 3:30 PM on the same day, LG Energy Solution's subscription deposit had already reached 31.03 trillion KRW. Considering that funds usually pour in on the second and final day of subscription, it is highly likely that the subscription deposit will surpass 100 trillion KRW for the first time ever.

Kim Young-hwan, a researcher at NH Investment & Securities, said, "Individual investors did not actively buy other large-cap stocks as they were preparing funds for LG Energy Solution's subscription deposit, resulting in a sluggish stock market with low trading volume."

He added, "While Japan, Taiwan, and the Shanghai Composite rose the day before, the Korean stock market experienced a relatively large correction, suggesting that supply-demand factors had a greater impact than global issues. The supply-demand concentration caused by a large IPO is an event that requires a buying response that takes advantage of this situation."

The KOSDAQ index traded at 943.94, down 13.96 points (1.46%) from the previous day. In the KOSDAQ market, individuals bought shares worth 57.6 billion KRW, but foreign and institutional investors sold shares worth 69.8 billion KRW and 1.4 billion KRW, respectively.

Among the large-cap stocks, L&F (1.12%), EcoPro BM (0.74%), and Rino Industrial (0.73%) showed gains. Most others, including Wemade (-5.73%), Pearl Abyss (-2.59%), Alteogen (-2.15%), and Celltrion Pharm (-2.07%), declined.

Notably, EcoPro BM (0.74%) overtook Celltrion Healthcare (-1.22%) for the first time since listing to become the largest market capitalization stock on the KOSDAQ market.

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