KOSPI Narrows Losses on Foreign Net Buying... Closes Slightly Lower

by Jang Hyowon

Published 16 Dec.2022 15:57(KST)

After the US stock market closed with a sharp decline, the domestic stock market also started with a significant drop on the 16th. Employees are busy working in the dealing room of Hana Bank. Photo by Heo Younghan younghan@

[Asia Economy Reporter Jang Hyowon] The KOSPI index narrowed its losses and closed in a slightly negative range, supported by net buying from foreigners.

On the 16th, the KOSPI index closed at 2360.02, down 0.95 points (0.04%) from the previous day.

On that day, the KOSPI index started the session with a decline of over 1% due to concerns about an economic recession following the release of real economy indicators from China and the U.S. that fell short of expectations, but the losses narrowed as net buying from foreigners and individuals came in.

Foreigners and individuals recorded net purchases of 290.3 billion KRW and 28.1 billion KRW respectively, while institutions showed net selling of 350.8 billion KRW. Foreigners led the market by net buying 524.7 billion KRW in the futures market. Program trading saw net buying of 12.7 billion KRW in arbitrage trading and 150.6 billion KRW in non-arbitrage trading.

By sector, the electric and gas industry showed strength. This was thanks to the increase in heating demand due to the recent cold wave and news of plans to raise electricity and gas rates next year. The electric and gas sector rose 3.57%, medical precision 2.95%, and insurance 0.74%. On the other hand, construction -1.32%, telecommunications -1.23%, and machinery -1.16% recorded weakness.

Top market capitalization stocks showed mixed trends. Samsung Electronics, which started the day weak, closed in a slightly positive range with a 0.34% gain, and Samsung affiliates such as Samsung Biologics and Samsung SDI showed strength with increases of 1.46% and 0.3%, respectively. Meanwhile, LG Energy Solution remained slightly down at -0.1%, SK Hynix -2.24%, NAVER -1.1%, and Celltrion -0.28%.

On the same day, the KOSDAQ index closed at 717.41, down 5.27 points (0.73%) from the previous day. Institutions and foreigners recorded net sales of 37.1 billion KRW and 35.1 billion KRW respectively, while individuals recorded net buying of 61 billion KRW.

Among the top market capitalization stocks, Celltrion Healthcare fell 0.92%, and EcoPro BM also closed down 0.98%. HLB -0.31%, EcoPro -3.19%, and Pearl Abyss -2.55% were also weak. On the other hand, L&F showed a slightly positive trend with a 0.31% gain, and Kakao Games closed strong with a 3.87% increase.