[Asia Economy Reporter Junho Hwang] The KOSPI opened lower on the 7th. With foreign investors and institutional investors showing strong net selling intentions, the market is barely holding the 2700 level. Investor sentiment, which was dampened by the increased likelihood of aggressive monetary policy in the U.S. the previous day, has yet to improve.
On this day, the KOSPI started the session at 2714.70, down 20.33 points (0.74%) from the previous close. Eleven minutes after the market opened, the decline slightly narrowed to 0.67%. At this time, foreign and institutional investors are showing net selling intentions of 70.4 billion KRW and 34.1 billion KRW, respectively. Individual investors are stepping in with net buying of 111.2 billion KRW, helping to stem the index's decline.
Among all listed stocks, only 161 showed gains. The top market capitalization stocks were also mostly in the red. Samsung Electronics, the perennial leader that released its Q1 earnings this year, was down 0.29% from the previous close, trading at 68,300 KRW. It briefly fell to a 52-week low of 68,100 KRW at the start of trading but quickly recovered.
Before the market opened, Samsung Electronics announced that its consolidated operating profit for Q1 this year reached 14.1 trillion KRW, a 50.32% increase compared to the same period last year. This exceeded the average operating profit forecast of 13.0849 trillion KRW compiled by securities firms until the previous day. Revenue was 77 trillion KRW, up 17.76% from the same period last year, marking the highest quarterly revenue ever. This is the first time quarterly revenue has surpassed 70 trillion KRW. Besides Samsung Electronics, LG Energy Solution, ranked second in market capitalization, was down 0.56%, SK Hynix fell 1.33%, and NAVER dropped 0.61%, all showing downward trends.
Early in the session, the steel & metal and food & beverage sectors were among the few showing gains, both rising by about 0.05%. However, it appears that stock-specific issues, rather than sector-wide factors, influenced the price movements. KG Dongbu Steel Preferred Shares and KG Dongbu Steel, which were reported to have potential acquisition interest from Ssangyong Motor the previous day, surged 29.71% and 21.43%, respectively.
The food & beverage sector, expected to benefit from reopening optimism and sales expansion momentum due to rising prices, saw gains led by Nongshim (3.92%), followed by Samyang Foods (2.45%), Haitai Confectionery & Foods (1.86%), and Sajo Seafood (1.25%).
The KOSDAQ opened down 6.21 points (0.66%) at 936.92. At this time, only individual investors are showing net buying intentions of 94.1 billion KRW. Foreign and institutional investors continue net selling with 45.5 billion KRW and 41.8 billion KRW, respectively.
Among all KOSDAQ stocks, only 200 showed gains. Among the top market cap stocks, Ecopro BM, which rose to the top spot in KOSDAQ market capitalization the previous day, stood out with a 2.95% increase, trading at 436,300 KRW at this time.
Ji-young Han, a researcher at Kiwoom Securities, said, "With the U.S. Federal Reserve discussing quantitative tightening and accelerating tightening measures, uncertainty remains over how much the market can absorb this shock." She added, "Since the market has already reflected the shock of tightening spasms during Q1 this year, the price adjustment pressure from the Fed's tightening is expected to be less than in Q1." She further predicted, "The domestic stock market will also show a downward trend influenced by adjustments in major markets such as the U.S. and Europe due to the Fed's tightening burden."
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