US Stocks Cheer Slower Inflation... KOSPI Rises After Opening

KOSPI and KOSDAQ Start Higher
KOSPI, Foreign Buying Gradually Expands
KOSDAQ, Rises Over 1%

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Hwang Yoon-joo] On the 14th, the KOSPI and KOSDAQ started higher. Supply and demand remain a variable. Foreign investors are engaged in a buy-sell battle in the KOSPI market early in the session. The KOSDAQ is expanding its gains to the 1% range.

As of 9:25 AM, the KOSPI is trading at 2391.94, up 0.79% (18.97 points) from the previous day. The KOSPI opened at 2380.81, up 0.35% (8.41 points), and has continued its upward momentum.

Institutions alone are net buyers of 80.2 billion KRW, supporting the index. Foreigners and individuals are net sellers of 75.4 billion KRW and 3.4 billion KRW, respectively. Foreign investors switched from buying to selling early in the session. However, they are buying 265 billion KRW worth in the futures market.

Among the top market capitalization stocks, all are rising except SK Hynix (-0.12%). Samsung Electronics rose 1.01%, returning to the 60,000 KRW level. Samsung SDI +2.95%, Samsung Biologics +2.68%, and Celltrion +2.23% showed notable gains.

As of 9:37 AM, the KOSDAQ is at 723.11, up 1.11% (7.95 points) from the previous day. It opened at 718.17, up 0.42% (3.01 points), and is gaining upward momentum.

Foreigners and institutions are net buyers of 17.6 billion KRW and 14 billion KRW, respectively, driving the index. Individuals are net sellers of 25.8 billion KRW.

Among the top market capitalization stocks, Celltrion Healthcare +1.98%, Kakao Games +2.30%, Pearl Abyss +2.46%, EcoPro +1.42%, Celltrion Pharm +2.72%, and L&F +1.39% are on the rise. Meanwhile, EcoPro BM -0.10%, L&F -0.10%, and Studio Dragon -0.23% are declining. HLB is unchanged.

The reason both major indices are rising is the judgment that US inflation has passed its worst point. The US Department of Labor announced that the US Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose 7.1% year-on-year. This figure is below the expected 7.3% and last month's 7.7%.

However, among the November CPI items, housing costs (6.9% → 7.1%) and rent (7.5% → 7.9%)?real estate-related items?showed an upward trend, which is a concern. These factors contribute to the persistence of inflation.

As seen in foreign investor supply and demand, caution is increasing ahead of the December Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting, which is expected to limit the index's upside. Kiwoom Securities analyst Han Ji-young pointed out, "The US stock market gave back intraday gains yesterday," adding, "The market is now waiting for the December FOMC and is refraining from excessive position betting."

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