Foreigners and institutions 'selling' drives KOSPI down 0.3%... below 2350 level

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Jung-yoon] The KOSPI index is weak due to net selling by foreigners and institutions.

As of 9:19 a.m. on the 19th, the KOSPI index was recorded at 2,351.83, down 8.19 points (0.35%) from the previous trading day. The index opened at 2,350.78, down 9.24 points (0.39%), and fell to as low as 2,342.28 before recovering to the 2,350 level. Individuals made net purchases worth approximately 65.9 billion KRW, while foreigners and institutions made net sales worth about 40.7 billion KRW and 21.3 billion KRW, respectively.

Among the top market capitalization stocks, Hyundai Motor fell the most, down 2.46%. It was followed by Kia (-2.34%), Samsung SDI (-2.25%), Samsung Biologics (-1.32%), and LG Energy Solution (-1.24%). SK Hynix (1.15%), Celltrion (0.56%), and Naver (NAVER) (0.55%) showed gains.

By sector, transportation equipment (-1.63%), machinery (-1.17%), construction (-0.89%), and textiles and apparel (-0.88%) declined. On the other hand, transportation and warehousing (0.60%), telecommunications (0.44%), and medical precision (0.39%) sectors were strong.

The U.S. stock market closed lower the previous trading day amid ongoing concerns about tightening policies by the Federal Reserve (Fed) and other major central banks, as well as fears of a recession. On the 16th (local time), the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 281.76 points (0.85%) to 32,920.46, the large-cap S&P 500 index dropped 43.39 points (1.11%) to 3,852.36, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq index closed down 105.11 points (0.97%) at 10,705.41.

At the same time, the KOSDAQ index showed an upward trend. It rose 0.95 points (0.13%) from the previous trading day to 718.36. Individuals and institutions made net purchases worth approximately 33.6 billion KRW and 1.2 billion KRW, respectively, while foreigners made net sales worth about 33.7 billion KRW.

Among the top market capitalization stocks, Kakao Games (3.39%), Celltrion Pharm (2.56%), Pearl Abyss (2.05%), and Celltrion Healthcare (1.70%) rose. Conversely, L&F (-1.02%), EcoPro BM (-0.40%), and Rino Industrial (-0.25%) declined. EcoPro remained flat.

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