Foreigners' Net Buying Pushes KOSPI Up 0.3% Intraday

[Asia Economy Reporter Minji Lee] The KOSPI and KOSDAQ indices are maintaining an upward trend in the morning session. The KOSPI's positive performance is attributed to foreign investors increasing their net purchases in both the spot and futures markets.

As of 10:35 AM on the 21st, the KOSPI stands at 2394.65, up 0.33% (7.80 points) from the previous trading day. The index opened at 2387.91, a 0.04% (1.06 points) increase from the previous day, and has continued its upward momentum. Foreign buying is driving the index higher, with foreigners purchasing stocks worth 123.4 billion KRW alone, while individuals and institutions sold stocks worth 24 billion KRW and 100.9 billion KRW respectively.

The domestic stock market appears to be influenced by the U.S. stock market's rise, which closed higher on relief over major companies' earnings. However, the upward movement is limited due to concerns over economic slowdown in Europe, which has led to a stronger dollar. Ji-young Han, a researcher at Kiwoom Securities, stated, "The KOSPI continues to show differentiated trends by sector and stock. During the session, it is expected to react sensitively to exchange rate changes in the foreign exchange market and corporate earnings issues. Especially, attention should be paid to the upcoming European Central Bank monetary policy meeting and the U.S. FOMC results announcement on the 28th."

By sector, the largest gains were seen in textiles and apparel (2.05%), services (1.26%), electrical and electronics (1.18%), paper and wood (1.16%), and distribution (0.63%). In the U.S. stock market, big tech companies and the semiconductor sector showed gains driven by earnings expectations and hopes for the passage of semiconductor promotion legislation. This interest in related sectors continues in the domestic market as well. China's smartphone shipments in June turned to growth, supported by stimulus measures and easing lockdowns, which is also driving gains in related IT component stocks.

Among the top market capitalization stocks, Samsung Electronics (1.49%), LG Energy Solution (0.78%), NAVER (2.64%), Samsung SDI (2.33%), LG Chem (2.41%), and Kakao (0.95%) continued their upward trend. Conversely, SK Hynix (-0.49%), Samsung Biologics (-0.61%), and Hyundai Motor (-0.79%) declined.

At the same time, the KOSDAQ index is at 791.70, up 0.12% (0.92 points) from the previous trading day. The KOSDAQ opened at 792.95, a 0.28% (2.33 points) increase from the previous day, and is maintaining its upward trend. Currently, individual investors are the sole net buyers with purchases worth 104.5 billion KRW, while foreigners and institutions sold stocks worth 86.8 billion KRW and 13.1 billion KRW respectively.

Among the top market capitalization stocks on KOSDAQ, Ecopro BM (0.55%), L&F (1.73%), Kakao Games (1.36%), Pearl Abyss (2.09%), Studio Dragon (0.52%), and Chunbo (0.44%) rose, while Celltrion Healthcare (-3.39%), HLB (-3.32%), Celltrion Pharm (-1.49%), and Alteogen (-1.82%) declined.

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