KOSPI Smiles on US Tailwind... Dual Buying by Institutions and Foreigners

The KOSPI index closed higher, supported by the strong performance of the U.S. stock market.

On the 19th, the KOSPI index closed at 2,537.79, up 22.39 points (0.89%) from the previous day. The trading volume was 563.11 million shares, and the trading value was recorded at 9.0871 trillion won.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

By investor type, institutions and foreigners were net buyers of 559 billion won and 558 billion won respectively, while individuals were net sellers of 1.1017 trillion won. Program trading saw a net sale of 400 million won in arbitrage trading and a net purchase of 196.2 billion won in non-arbitrage trading.

On this day, the KOSPI index started higher, buoyed by expectations for a U.S. debt ceiling deal, positive outlooks on the AI industry from the CEO of Nvidia in the U.S. stock market, and favorable news such as Japan’s subsidies for Micron, which led to a strong performance in the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index.

Subsequently, semiconductor stocks in Asia, including South Korea, rose together, and foreigners concentrated their buying on the electrical and electronics sector. Large-cap stocks such as Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix, as well as small and mid-cap semiconductor-related stocks on KOSDAQ, showed strength.

By sector, most sectors were strong. The machinery sector rose 1.94%, electrical and electronics 1.86%, construction 1.57%, paper and wood 1.54%, insurance 1.21%, services 1.11%, manufacturing 0.93%, and electricity and gas 0.83%. On the other hand, steel and metals fell 1.32%, chemicals -0.64%, food and beverages -0.62%, and transportation equipment -0.32%.

Top market capitalization stocks showed mixed movements. Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix, boosted by the strong Philadelphia Semiconductor Index, rose 3.32% and 3.95% respectively, leading the overall KOSPI index. Samsung SDI rose 0.87%, NAVER 1.88%, and Kakao 1.22%. Conversely, LG Energy Solution fell 1.78%, Samsung Biologics -0.13%, LG Chem -1.55%, Hyundai Motor -0.48%, and Kia -1.33% were weak.

The KOSDAQ index also showed strength on the day. The KOSDAQ index closed at 841.72, up 5.83 points (0.7%) from the previous day. By investor type, institutions and foreigners were net buyers of 108.7 billion won and 84.2 billion won respectively, while individuals were net sellers of 182.7 billion won.

Among the top market capitalization stocks, secondary battery-related stocks showed weakness. EcoPro BM and EcoPro fell 2.16% and 5.84% respectively, and L&F recorded a decline of 6.14%. JYP Ent. fell 3.42%, and SM declined 3.06%. On the other hand, Celltrion Healthcare rose 2.9%, HLB 1.39%, Celltrion Pharm 3.89%, and Kakao Games 1.81% increased.

Meanwhile, in the Seoul foreign exchange market, the won/dollar exchange rate closed at 1,326.7 won, down 7.5 won from the previous day.

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