The Bank of Korea's Big Step Spurs KOSPI Relief Rally, Settling Above 2330... Institutional Investors 'Buy'

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Myunghwan Lee] On the morning of the 13th, the KOSPI showed an upward trend, settling above the 2330 level. Although the Bank of Korea's Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) made its first-ever big step (a 0.5 percentage point increase in the base interest rate at once) decision that morning, the market appeared to rally in relief as it had already anticipated the big step. Institutional investors showed net buying for the first time in three trading days.

As of 11:06 a.m., the KOSPI was at 2,335.42, up 0.76% (17.66 points) from the previous trading day. The KOSPI opened at 2,324.45, up 0.29% (6.69 points), then the pace of gains slowed before rising again around the MPC's rate hike decision. By investor type, individuals sold off 204.2 billion KRW alone, while foreigners and institutions bought net amounts of 31.6 billion KRW and 178.6 billion KRW, respectively.

Many of the top market capitalization stocks are on the rise. Hyundai Motor is trading at 184,500 KRW, up 3.07% (5,500 KRW) from the previous day, showing a strong upward trend. SK Hynix is also trading up 2.36%. Other gainers include ▲Samsung Electronics (0.34%) ▲LG Energy Solution (0.50%) ▲Naver (1.50%) ▲LG Chem (1.36%) ▲Samsung SDI (0.76%) ▲Kia (1.78%). Only Samsung Biologics (-0.12%) and Samsung Electronics Preferred (-0.19%) are slightly down.

By sector, textiles and apparel (3.78%), transportation and warehousing (2.15%), and transportation equipment (1.73%) are leading the gains. Conversely, medical precision (-1.82%) and electric and gas utilities (-1.10%) are declining.

At the same time, the KOSDAQ index is at 757.44, up 0.89% (6.66 points) from the previous day. The KOSDAQ opened at 751.34, up 0.07% (0.56 points), then turned down before rising again following the big step decision. By investor type, individuals and institutions bought net amounts of 48.9 billion KRW and 20.7 billion KRW, respectively, while foreigners sold a net 64.1 billion KRW.

Among the top 10 KOSDAQ market capitalization stocks, nine are rising. CJ ENM is trading at 102,800 KRW, up 6.31% (6,100 KRW) from the previous day, along with ▲EcoPro BM (4.60%) ▲Pearl Abyss (3.91%) ▲Alteogen (2.76%) ▲Kakao Games (1.32%). Seegene is the only decliner, down 2.95%.

By KOSDAQ sector, publishing and media reproduction (5.32%), broadcasting services (4.15%), and telecommunications broadcasting services (3.17%) are showing strong gains. Other manufacturing (-0.94%) and metals (-0.84%) are declining.

However, with events such as the U.S. June Consumer Price Index (CPI) announcement scheduled for the night of the 13th Korean time, there remains potential for increased volatility in the stock market this week. Yumi Kim, a researcher at Kiwoom Securities, said, "Considering that the expected U.S. June CPI to be announced on the night of the 13th could be as high as 8.9%, if the CPI exceeds 9.0%, it could shock the market similarly to the consumer price shock in May. Additionally, with Germany's June CPI announcement scheduled amid the visible energy crisis, there is further potential for increased volatility."

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