After 9 Trading Days... KOSPI Edges Up 0.04%

Seoul Myeongdong Hana Bank Dealing Room. Photo by Jo Yongjun jun21@

The KOSPI index, which had fallen for eight consecutive trading days, closed higher on the 15th, supported by institutional buying.

On that day, the KOSPI index closed at 2525.99, up 0.94 points (0.04%) from the previous session. The KOSPI opened at 2525.69, up 0.64 points (0.03%), fluctuated throughout the day, and managed to close higher just before the market closed. Foreigners and individuals sold 49.4 billion KRW and 46.1 billion KRW respectively. Institutions were the sole buyers, purchasing 86.7 billion KRW worth of shares.

Donggil Noh, a researcher at Shinhan Investment Corp., said, "Shipping stocks were strong due to geopolitical conflicts in the Red Sea," adding, "After eight consecutive days of decline, institutions viewed the drop as excessive and switched to net buying in futures. They net bought semiconductor stocks such as Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix."

He also noted, "There were continued profit-taking sales of related stocks that had risen following the approval of the Bitcoin spot Exchange-Traded Fund (ETF)," and added, "Due to the impact of geopolitical conflicts and transportation disruptions, declines in Tesla and Ford, and falling battery cell prices, secondary battery-related stocks fell together amid concerns about the industry outlook."

Among the top market capitalization stocks, KakaoBank (6.97%), Kia (2.94%), Samsung Biologics (2.69%), Shinhan Financial Group (1.50%), KB Financial Group (1.18%), Kakao (1.16%), and Samsung Electronics (1.09%) rose in that order. Conversely, Celltrion (-4.47%), LG Energy Solution (-3.27%), POSCO Future M (-2.55%), LG Chem (-2.34%), Samsung SDI (-1.96%), Samsung C&T (-1.47%), and POSCO Holdings (-1.45%) declined.

By sector, financials (1.42%), transportation equipment (1.30%), insurance (1.27%), and transportation and warehousing (0.79%) rose. On the other hand, textiles and apparel (-1.98%), construction (-1.16%), chemicals (-1.09%), steel and metals (-1.03%), and medical precision (-1.00%) sectors fell.

The KOSDAQ index closed at 859.71, down 8.37 points (-0.96%) from the previous trading day. The index opened at 865.45, down 2.63 points (0.30%), and widened its losses. Foreigners and institutions sold 8.7 billion KRW and 103.1 billion KRW respectively. Individuals were net buyers, purchasing 102.2 billion KRW.

Among the top market capitalization stocks, LS Materials (3.02%), Hugel (2.77%), and L&F (1.71%) rose. Conversely, most stocks such as JYP Entertainment (JYP Ent.) (-7.87%), Alteogen (-5.80%), HLB (-4.34%), EcoPro BM (-3.78%), Rainbow Robotics (-3.42%), and SM (-3.06%) closed lower. Institutions sold mainly in the secondary battery and entertainment sectors, leading to weakness in related stocks.

On that day, the won-dollar exchange rate in the Seoul foreign exchange market closed at 1320.2 won, up 6.7 won from the previous trading day.