KOSPI Closes Down 0.6% Amid Net Selling by Foreigners and Institutions

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Minji Lee] The KOSPI closed lower due to net selling by foreigners and institutions.

On the 17th, the KOSPI ended the session at 3,134.52, down 0.60% (18.80 points) from the previous trading day. The KOSPI opened at 3,163.21, up 0.31% (9.89 points) from the previous day, then widened its losses to nearly 1% in the afternoon, but narrowed the decline towards the end of the session. Looking at investor trends, individuals alone bought stocks worth 727.5 billion KRW, while foreigners and institutions sold stocks worth 599.7 billion KRW and 143.4 billion KRW, respectively.

By sector, transportation and warehousing (1.02%), banking (0.93%), paper and wood (0.90%), and services (0.57%) showed gains. The rise in airline stocks stood out, boosting the transportation and warehousing sector index. By stock, Hanjin KAL (10.1%), Jin Air (5.8%), Korea Airports Corporation (4.2%), Korean Air (4.0%), and Asiana Airlines (3.6%) rose.

Among the top market capitalization stocks, Samsung Electronics (-0.62%), SK Hynix (-0.84%), Samsung Biologics (-7.81%), Hyundai Motor (-0.87%), Samsung SDI (-0.48%), and Celltrion (-0.37%) declined.

At the same time, the KOSDAQ index closed at 962.50, down 0.44% (4.22 points) from the previous trading day. The KOSDAQ index also showed nearly a 1% decline in the afternoon, but the decline narrowed as institutions switched to net buying. Looking at investor trends, individuals and institutions bought stocks worth 142.1 billion KRW and 11.6 billion KRW, respectively, while foreigners alone sold stocks worth 159.1 billion KRW.

By sector, transportation (3.6%), entertainment and culture (1.66%), and telecommunications services (1.29%) showed the largest gains. Among transportation sectors, Taewoong Logistics surged about 10% due to a significant increase in earnings driven by rising shipping freight rates.

Among the top market capitalization stocks, Celltrion Healthcare (0.44%), Celltrion Pharm (0.30%), Kakao Games (0.60%), and HL Biopharma (0.31%) rose, while EcoPro BM (-0.82%), Pearl Abyss (-1.41%), and SK Materials (-0.72%) declined.

Seosangyoung, a researcher at Mirae Asset Securities, explained, “The decline widened due to the spread of COVID-19 in Asian countries, but the domestic stock market narrowed losses ahead of the close. The UK announced a partial easing of COVID-19 lockdown measures, and India is seeing a gradual decrease in new COVID-19 cases, which acted as positive factors.”