Institutions and Foreigners Buy Together... KOSPI's Uptrend Continues

On the 2nd, the KOSPI index showed strong performance in the early session due to net buying by foreigners and institutions. Dealers are working in the Hana Bank dealing room in Euljiro, Seoul. Photo by Moon Honam munonam@

[Asia Economy Reporter Ji Yeon-jin] The KOSPI index continued its strong performance on the afternoon of the 2nd, supported by simultaneous buying from foreigners and institutions. Large-cap stocks are collectively rising as domestic companies' exports showed solid momentum last month.

As of 2:05 PM on the day, the KOSPI stood at 3,019.06, up 40.12 points (1.35%) from the previous day. While individual investors sold a net amount worth 1.0155 trillion KRW, foreigners and institutions bought net amounts worth 287.8 billion KRW and 743.6 billion KRW, respectively.

The KOSPI recovered the 3,000-point level early in the session, influenced by the three major U.S. stock indices hitting new highs the previous day. It even surpassed 3,030 points during the session but gave up some gains in the afternoon.

Among the top market capitalization stocks in the KOSPI, all showed gains except LG Chem (-0.12%). Samsung Electronics showed a strong 3% rise during the session, with notable gains from Kia (+2.02%) and Kakao (+1.59%). In particular, SK Innovation (+4.59%) surged sharply due to simultaneous buying by institutions and foreigners.

Lee Jin-woo, a researcher at Meritz Securities, said, "While the rise in the U.S. stock market had an influence, the announcement of strong earnings from domestic semiconductor companies improved investor sentiment," adding, "As the U.S. market stabilized faster than expected, the previously neglected domestic stock market is belatedly following suit."

At the same time, the KOSDAQ index rose 10.12 points (1.01%) to 1,008.69. Foreigners and institutions bought net amounts worth 113.9 billion KRW and 34.5 billion KRW, respectively, while individuals sold a net amount worth 116.6 billion KRW.

Among the top market capitalization stocks in the KOSDAQ, L&F (+2.98%), Celltrion Pharm (+2.16%), and SK Materials (+2.40%) recorded gains of around 2%. Biopharmaceutical company Alteogen (+8.78%) surged sharply on news of new drug development. On the other hand, Pearl Abyss (-1.74%), Kakao Games (-0.46%), and Wemade (-1.04%) showed weakness.

Han Ji-young, a researcher at Kiwoom Securities, said, "The fact that major items all showed favorable trends in October exports suggests that the impact of supply shortages on the domestic export industry is limited," adding, "The strong performance of Tesla (8.5%) and Ford (5.1%) in the U.S. stock market, driven by expectations of expanded investment in the electric vehicle business, has improved investment sentiment in domestic automobile and secondary battery-related sectors today."