KOSPI and KOSDAQ Start Rising Together... Foreigners Net Selling in Early Trading

On the 23rd, the KOSPI and KOSDAQ indices both started the day with gains.

As of 9:10 a.m. that day, the KOSPI index stood at 2,566.01, up 8.93 points (0.35%) from the previous trading day. Institutional investors were net buyers of 29.9 billion KRW, individuals net buyers of 600 million KRW, while foreign investors were net sellers of 31.6 billion KRW.

The stock price trends among the top 10 groups in the KOSPI market were mixed. Samsung Electronics, which had been on an upward trend recently, traded down 0.29% at 68,300 KRW in early trading, appearing to take a breather. SK Hynix also declined 0.31% to 97,900 KRW. On the other hand, LG Energy Solution rose 2.14% to 572,000 KRW in early trading, with LG Chem (1.29%) and Samsung SDI (0.57%) also showing slight gains.

Han Ji-young, a researcher at Kiwoom Securities, said, "With the coexistence of upside and downside factors such as hawkish remarks from U.S. Federal Reserve officials, debt ceiling negotiation issues causing uncertainty from the U.S., a decline in the KRW-USD exchange rate, and favorable foreign demand conditions, the market is expected to show a box range movement." She added, "Investor sentiment for growth stocks, including artificial intelligence (AI), is expected to remain positive." She also noted, "After capital outflows from the secondary battery stocks, which had been the leading theme stocks, funds are moving into sectors such as semiconductors, automobiles, and entertainment. However, as rapid rotation trading is occurring among these sectors, increasing volatility in capital flows, it is advisable to avoid short-term rotation trading."

At the same time, the KOSDAQ index was trading at 856.36, up 4.32 points (0.51%) from the previous trading day. Individuals were net buyers of 61.2 billion KRW, while foreign investors sold 61.7 billion KRW.

Among the top market cap groups in KOSDAQ, EcoPro BM (2.75%) and EcoPro (2.65%) showed simultaneous gains, with Celltrion Healthcare (0.53%) and L&F (3.39%) also rising. Game stocks such as Kakao Games (-0.13%) and Pearl Abyss (-0.54%) declined slightly.

Meanwhile, in the Seoul foreign exchange market that day, the KRW-USD exchange rate traded at 1,311.40 KRW, down 6.60 KRW (0.5%) from the previous trading day.