KOSPI Falls 3,000 Points... Foreigners and Institutions Net Sell 3 Trillion Won

KOSPI Also Threatened Below 900... Continued Impact of Rapid Interest Rate Hikes

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[Asia Economy Reporter Minwoo Lee] The KOSPI, which had been wavering due to the rise in U.S. Treasury yields, fell below 3000 after two days. This appears to be the result of foreign and institutional investors selling off more than 3 trillion won.

As of 1:40 PM on the 26th, the KOSPI recorded 2999.20, down 3.24% (100.49 points) from the previous day. After a slightly weak start, the decline rapidly deepened, ultimately falling below the 3000 mark.

Foreign and institutional investors each net sold over 1 trillion won, pulling the index down. Foreign investors sold 1.6081 trillion won, and institutions sold 1.4587 trillion won. Although individual investors net bought 3.0206 trillion won, they could not prevent the index from falling.

All sectors are in decline. The machinery sector experienced the largest drop at -4.53%. This was followed by chemicals (-3.97%), electrical and electronics (-3.88%), and textiles and apparel (-3.51%), with many sectors falling more than 3%.

Among the top 10 market capitalization stocks, only Kia Motors rose by 2.0%. All other stocks were down. LG Chem had the largest decline at -5.9%, followed by SK Hynix (-5.3%), Celltrion (-5.0%), Samsung SDI (-4.2%), Samsung Electronics (-3.7%), and Hyundai Motor (-3.4%).

The KOSDAQ is also plunging. It recorded 907.03, down 3.12% (29.18 points) from the previous day. Similarly, after a slightly weak start, it gave back the previous day's gains of over 3%.

In the KOSDAQ market, foreign and institutional selling continues. They net sold 217 billion won and 155.8 billion won, respectively. Individual investors bought 388.1 billion won worth of stocks.

Most sectors are on the decline. Paper and wood (-4.89%), telecommunications equipment (-4.67%), and information devices (-4.33%) were among the worst performers. Only transportation equipment and parts (1.12%) and computer services (0.33%) rose.

Among the top 10 market capitalization stocks, only HL Biopharma rose sharply by 8.4%. Celltrion Pharm (-6.1%), Alteogen (-5.9%), SK Materials (-4.3%), and Celltrion Healthcare (-4.2%) all fell consecutively.

The continued outflow of funds is interpreted as a result of the sharp rise in the U.S. 10-year Treasury yield. On this day, the three major U.S. stock indices?the Dow Jones Industrial Average (-1.75%), S&P 500 (-2.45%), and Nasdaq Composite (-3.52%)?all declined consecutively. This was because the U.S. 10-year Treasury yield surged to 1.5%. During the trading session, it even reached 1.614%, a level similar to mid-February last year before the widespread outbreak of COVID-19.