"Foreign Investors Shift: Which Stocks Gained Weight in KOSPI and KOSDAQ as They Move Away from Semiconductors?"

As geopolitical tensions originating from the Middle East intensify, foreign investors have been increasing their holdings of so-called "war beneficiary stocks" in the KOSPI market, focusing on sectors such as energy and defense. In contrast, in the KOSDAQ market, they have concentrated on "theme stocks" such as telecommunications and robotics.

On the 14th, amid renewed hopes for resumed negotiations between the United States and Iran, the domestic stock market opened more than 2% higher. An employee is seen monitoring the stock market and exchange rates in the dealing room at the headquarters of Hana Bank in Jung-gu, Seoul. On this day, the KOSPI opened at 5,960.00, up 151.38 points (2.61%) from the previous trading day, and the KOSDAQ started at 1,120.61, up 20.77 points (1.89%). April 14, 2026. Photo by Cho Yongjun

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According to the Korea Exchange on April 15, the KOSPI stocks with the largest increases in foreign ownership so far this month were Shinsung ENG (up 8.86 percentage points), followed by Firstec (5.96 percentage points), Korea Line Corporation (4.93 percentage points), SNT Dynamics (3.39 percentage points), and Kukdong Oil & Chemicals (3.06 percentage points).

The buying trend of foreign investors in the KOSPI is aimed at "geopolitical risk diversification." Shinsung ENG, ranked first, operates in semiconductor and display cleanroom facilities and manufactures solar modules, also handling engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC). The company is preparing to supply solar panels for data centers. Firstec, in second place, is a representative K-Defense beneficiary, participating in major system projects such as the T-50 trainer and the Surion helicopter. SNT Dynamics, ranked fourth, supplies key modules for major weapon systems, including the K2 main battle tank and K9 self-propelled howitzer.

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Concerns over surging oil prices and possible logistics disruptions have led foreign capital to flow into logistics and energy sectors such as Korea Line Corporation (third place) and Kukdong Oil & Chemicals (fifth place), as well as raw material companies like Nam Sung Aluminum (ninth place) and Sam-A Aluminium (tenth place). In the shipping industry, time charter contracts allow fuel cost increases to be passed directly onto freight rates, making these companies relatively insulated from the fallout of the Middle East crisis. Kukdong Oil & Chemicals specializes in industrial lubricants, high-end specialty oils, liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), and petroleum product sales, directly benefiting from fluctuations in energy prices. Aluminum manufacturing and processing companies have seen their stock prices surge whenever tensions rise in the Middle East, due to concerns over aluminum supply.

In the KOSDAQ market, the focus has been on "technology theme stocks." SOLUM (first place) and Korea Optical Cable (third place) in the telecommunications and artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure sectors have stood out. The telecommunications equipment industry is advancing with investments and facility upgrades for the introduction of 5G standalone (SA) mode and commercialization of 6G, while optical communication technology for AI data center efficiency is drawing attention. SOLUM is expected to see growth potential in open radio access network (Open RAN) technology, in addition to its stable results in the distributed antenna system (DAS) market. Korea Optical Cable is benefiting from the skyrocketing demand for optical cables in AI data centers.

There has also been strong interest in the robotics theme. ACTRO (second place) has secured an exclusive supply contract for the next-generation robot model of a North American automaker, building on its existing collaborations with smartphone clients. Mass production of related products is expected to begin after the second quarter. Amosense (sixth place) is a materials and module specialist focusing on automotive electronic modules. Its new growth drivers, such as image and voice recognition modules, are expanding beyond autonomous vehicles to robots, prompting a corporate value re-evaluation.

The special defense sector has also been chosen by investors. Fiberpro (seventh place) is a key supplier of navigation systems and plays a crucial role in the production of the Cheongung-II surface-to-air missile system. victek (tenth place) specializes in electronic warfare systems and military power supply devices, and last year, it succeeded in mass-producing and delivering electronic warfare equipment for submarines domestically for the first time.

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Junyoung Kim, a researcher at iM Securities, said, "More than 90% of foreign net selling in the KOSPI is concentrated in semiconductors, but their attitude toward other sectors is completely different." He added, "It's not that they have abandoned Korea, but rather that they are restructuring their sector allocations."

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