[Featured Stock] Cosmetic Stocks Riding a Favorable Breeze... Upward Trend Continues

[Asia Economy Reporter Oh Ju-yeon] Cosmetics stocks have been showing continuous upward trends due to news of Chinese group tourists visiting Korea and expectations of the easing of the Hanhanryeong (Korean Wave ban).

On the 9th, Korea Cosmetics reached an intraday high of 13,650 KRW, setting a new 52-week high. As of 10:16 AM, it was trading at 12,900 KRW, up 10.26% from the previous trading day. The stock price, which had been rising since the end of last year, increased by about 10% in January. The closing price on the 2nd was 11,700 KRW.

Able C&C rose 5.34% to 10,850 KRW at this time. Tony Moly increased by 4.81% to 10,900 KRW, and It's Hanbul traded up 4.16% at 20,050 KRW.

Other companies such as Korea Kolmar (3.65%) and AmorePacific (1.40%) also saw gains. On the other hand, LG Household & Health Care traded down 0.74% to 1,336,000 KRW compared to the previous trading day.

Researcher Jo Mi-jin of NH Investment & Securities analyzed, "Cosmetics stocks surged collectively due to strong sales in the duty-free shop industry in Q4, the return of Chinese group tourists, and expectations for Chinese President Xi Jinping's visit to Korea," adding, "It is judged that the stock prices reflect expectations of earnings improvement due to industry recovery."

She added, "In the mid to long term, it is necessary to focus on companies with strong earnings improvement momentum," maintaining AmorePacific as the top preferred stock in the sector and Cosmax as the second preferred stock. Researcher Jo emphasized, "Among small and mid-cap stocks, attention is needed for Clio," and highlighted, "Considering the direction of business strategy, efforts to improve corporate structure in line with trends, and base effects, focus should be on companies with strong earnings improvement momentum in 2020."