[Asia Economy Reporter Kwon Jae-hee] Semiconductor stocks collectively fell due to negative news from Micron, causing the KOSPI index to drop below the 2500 mark again on the 10th after just one day.
On the 10th, the KOSPI index closed at 2480.88, down 0.90% (22.58 points) from the previous trading day, barely holding above the 2480 level. This marked a retreat from the 2500 level that had been regained just over two months ago, lost again in a single day.
The index opened at 2493.70, down 0.39% (9.76 points) from the previous close, and extended its losses throughout the session.
The decline was driven by foreign investors returning to a selling trend after 10 trading days. Foreign and institutional investors sold stocks worth 104.9 billion KRW and 203.2 billion KRW respectively, while individual investors purchased stocks worth 261.7 billion KRW.
The won-dollar exchange rate closed at 1310.4 KRW per dollar, up 5.8 KRW from the previous day's close. This marked the first time in four trading days that the exchange rate ended above the 1310 KRW level since June 4th (1310.1 KRW).
The sharp drop in the U.S. stock market the previous day, caused by weakened semiconductor investment sentiment ahead of the Consumer Price Index (CPI) announcement, is also seen as influencing the KOSPI's decline.
Micron Technology announced that it might fail to meet its previously forecasted quarterly earnings, following Nvidia, which led the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index?a composite of the top 30 semiconductor design, manufacturing, and sales companies listed on the New York Stock Exchange?to plunge 4.57%.
By sector, the construction industry stood out with a 3.59% rise, driven by expectations of large-scale construction project orders following news of a summit between South Korea and Saudi Arabia. Hyundai Engineering & Construction surged over 7% during the session. Other sectors such as steel and metals (0.93%), non-metallic minerals (0.67%), and machinery (0.59%) also recorded gains. Conversely, textiles and apparel (-2.38%), services (-2.01%), electrical and electronics (-1.35%), securities (-1.21%), finance (-1.02%), and chemicals (-0.95%) declined.
Among the top 10 companies by market capitalization, only LG Energy Solution (0.11%) closed higher. Semiconductor stocks experienced significant losses, with Samsung Electronics down 1.50% and SK Hynix falling 3.47%.
Institutional and foreign investors sold Samsung Electronics stocks worth 147.9 billion KRW and 115.9 billion KRW respectively. SK Hynix was also sold off, with net sales of 69.1 billion KRW and 63.7 billion KRW respectively.
Other notable declines included Samsung Biologics (-1.11%), LG Chem (-3.43%), Samsung Electronics Preferred (-1.62%), NAVER (-1.13%), Samsung SDI (-0.49%), Hyundai Motor (-0.52%), and Kakao (-3.49%).
The KOSDAQ index closed at 820.27, down 1.60% (13.38 points). It opened at 829.29, down 0.52% (4.36 points) from the previous day.
In the KOSDAQ market, individual investors purchased stocks worth 224 billion KRW, while foreign and institutional investors sold stocks worth 81.2 billion KRW and 129.7 billion KRW respectively.
By sector, paper and wood (3.60%), metals (1.78%), construction (1.33%), chemicals (0.24%), and transportation (0.23%) rose. Meanwhile, transportation equipment (-2.99%), semiconductors (-2.81%), entertainment and culture (-2.78%), software (-2.62%), digital content (-2.47%), telecommunications equipment (-2.43%), and other services (-2.43%) declined.
Among the top 10 KOSDAQ stocks by market capitalization, all except Cheonbo (0.32%) closed lower. These included Celltrion Healthcare (-0.89%), EcoPro BM (-0.73%), L&F (-1.02%), HLB (-6.22%), Kakao Games (-3.40%), Pearl Abyss (-1.14%), Celltrion Pharm (-1.55%), Alteogen (-3.40%), and EcoPro (-0.75%).
Lee Kyung-min, a researcher at Daishin Securities, said, "With caution spreading ahead of the U.S. consumer price announcement, the weakness in semiconductor stocks widened the KOSPI's decline. If July inflation comes in below expectations, the stock market is expected to resume a technical rebound."
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