KOSPI Maintains Uptrend on Institutional Net Buying Pressure

[Asia Economy Reporter Minji Lee] The KOSPI is showing an upward trend due to net buying by institutional investors.

At 9:16 a.m. on the 19th, the KOSPI stood at 3,023.28, up 0.35% (9.35 points) from the previous trading day. The KOSPI opened at 3,013.05, down 0.33% (0.88 points) from the previous day, but turned upward due to institutional buying.

On this day, institutions purchased stocks worth 291.3 billion KRW in the KOSPI market during the early trading session. Foreign investors also net bought stocks worth 32.8 billion KRW. In contrast, individual investors alone net sold stocks worth 332 billion KRW.

Samsung Electronics, which showed a decline of more than 3% following the court imprisonment of Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong the previous day, is currently at 84,700 KRW, down 0.35% from the previous trading day. Samsung Electronics showed a decline of over 1% in the early session but is narrowing the loss. Samsung C&T (-1.75%) and Samsung Life Insurance (-0.89%) are also reducing their losses. Meanwhile, LG Chem (1.66%), Hyundai Motor (3.32%), Naver (0.83%), and Kakao (0.35%) showed upward trends.

At the same time, the KOSDAQ index stood at 941.94, down 0.28% (2.63 points) from the previous trading day. The index opened at 945.33, up 0.07% (0.66 points) from the previous day, but soon turned downward. Regarding investor trends, foreign investors alone purchased stocks worth 17.4 billion KRW, while individuals and institutions sold stocks worth 6.3 billion KRW and 9.2 billion KRW, respectively.

Looking at the top market capitalization stocks, most pharmaceutical and bio stocks, including Celltrion Healthcare (-1.80%), showed a downward trend. Celltrion Pharm (-2.62%), HL Biopharma (-0.33%), Seegene (-4.14%), and Alteogen (-0.14%) also declined.

Seonghoon Seo, a researcher at Samsung Securities, explained, “The KOSPI, which has experienced more than a 2% correction for two consecutive days, may see additional profit-taking as the recent rise was significant in a short period. When approaching buying, a divided response is effective.”