Recapture and Recapture Again... KOSPI's Fierce Battle to Enter the 'Top 10'

Kakao vs POSCO Holdings vs Celltrion
Market Cap Difference of 100 Billion to 300 Billion KRW
10th Place Market Cap Changed 8 Times in One Month

[Asia Economy Reporter Ji Yeon-jin] The competition for the 10th place in KOSPI market capitalization is intensifying. The main players are Kakao, a representative of technology growth stocks, Celltrion, a powerhouse in biotechnology, and POSCO Holdings, the leader in steel.

According to the Korea Exchange on the 30th, POSCO Holdings started the day with a 0.34% increase and reclaimed the 10th place in KOSPI market capitalization rankings shortly after the market opened. The company's market capitalization reached 24.9907 trillion KRW, jumping two spots from 12th place the previous day. Kakao, which re-entered the 10th place the day before with a market cap of 24.6716 trillion KRW, fell more than 1%, dropping to 13th place behind Celltrion (24.7817 trillion KRW). The market cap difference among these three stocks is only about 300 billion KRW.

The day before, Kakao closed up 2.38% compared to the previous trading day, reclaiming the 10th place in market capitalization. After being overtaken by POSCO Holdings on the 25th, Kakao re-entered the top 10 in market cap within two trading days. On the 22nd, Kakao lost the 10th place to Celltrion but regained it the next day, marking eight changes in the KOSPI top 10 rankings this month alone.

Kakao expanded its services based on the social networking service (SNS) "KakaoTalk," used by the entire nation, attracting active purchases from individual investors. This propelled its KOSPI market cap to 4th place in November last year, making it, along with NAVER, a representative growth stock of South Korea. However, with the start of U.S. interest rate hikes earlier this year, the popularity of growth stocks waned, pushing Kakao down to the top 10. Celltrion also experienced a high-flying run last December, reaching 6th place in KOSPI market cap due to the COVID-19 treatment theme. But as COVID-19 vaccinations began, it started to decline and fell out of the top 10 in November last year.

On the other hand, POSCO Holdings has been advancing since last October. Although steel prices have recently fallen, leading to expected poor performance, the company has been expanding its secondary battery business by partnering with GS Energy to enter the secondary battery recycling business and strengthening cooperation with LG Energy Solution in the secondary battery sector. Hwang Sung-hyun, a researcher at Hi Investment & Securities, said yesterday, "Recent expectations for China's real estate stimulus and new growth businesses will support the stock price," raising the target price from 310,000 KRW to 380,000 KRW.

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