KOSPI Falls 0.6% Amid Foreign and Institutional Selling... Most Top Market Cap Stocks Show Blue Signals

[Image source=Yonhap News]

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

As of 9:23 a.m. on the 20th, the KOSPI index was recorded at 2,337.34, down 14.83 points (0.63%) from the previous day. The index opened at 2,344.73, down 7.44 points (0.32%), and the decline widened thereafter. Foreigners and institutions net sold about 104 billion KRW and 3.9 billion KRW respectively, while individuals alone bought stocks worth 106.1 billion KRW, preventing further index decline.

Among the top market capitalization stocks, most showed declines except LG Energy Solution (0.10%). Hyundai Motor (-2.52%), Kia (-1.76%), and Celltrion (-1.40%) fell in that order. SK Hynix, which is expected to see profitability deterioration in Q4 this year, also dropped 1.27%.

By sector, pharmaceuticals (-1.19%), transportation equipment (-1.08%), services (-1.07%), electrical and electronics (-0.90%), and manufacturing (-0.83%) showed weakness. On the other hand, textiles and apparel (0.66%), securities (0.45%), paper and wood (0.39%), and insurance (0.26%) were on the rise.

The U.S. stock market closed lower amid ongoing concerns over interest rate hikes and economic recession. Additionally, Meta, the parent company of Facebook, which received a preliminary antitrust violation opinion from the European Union (EU), fell more than 4%, and Disney dropped nearly 5% as the movie "Avatar: The Way of Water" underperformed expectations, also impacting the market.

On the 19th (local time), the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at 32,757.54, down 162.92 points (0.49%) from the previous session. The S&P 500, focused on large-cap stocks, ended at 3,817.66, down 34.70 points (0.90%). The tech-heavy Nasdaq closed at 10,543.03, down 159.38 points (1.49%).

At the same time, the KOSDAQ index was also down. It was recorded at 713.12, down 4.10 points (0.57%) from the previous trading day. Individuals and institutions bought about 43.7 billion KRW and 700 million KRW respectively, while foreigners net sold about 42.1 billion KRW.

Among the top market capitalization stocks, Pearl Abyss (-2.22%), HLB (-1.73%), L&F (-1.58%), and Studio Dragon (-1.04%) declined. Celltrion Pharm (0.59%), EcoPro BM (0.10%), and EcoPro (0.09%) were on the rise.

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