[Good Morning Stock Market] Awaiting US Powell's Remarks... Semiconductor Stocks Favorable

On the 9th, the KOSPI is expected to remain cautious ahead of the Senate hearing of Jerome Powell, Chairman of the U.S. Federal Reserve (Fed).

On the previous day at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at 39,344.79, down 31.08 points (0.08%) from the previous session. The S&P 500 index rose 5.66 points (0.10%) to 5,572.85, and the Nasdaq index closed at 18,403.74, up 50.98 points (0.28%) from the previous session.

The U.S. stock market was led by semiconductor-related stocks including Nvidia. Nvidia rose following UBS's upgrade of its target price from $120 to $150, citing very strong demand momentum for Blackwell, the next-generation artificial intelligence (AI) semiconductor.

Expectations for an improvement in the semiconductor industry centered on AI semiconductors spread to Super Micro Computer (6.2%), Intel (6.2%), AMD (4.0%), Broadcom (2.5%), and the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index reached an all-time high. TSMC also recorded a historic high.

The Morgan Stanley Capital International (MSCI) Korea Index Exchange-Traded Fund (ETF) fell 1.1%, while the MSCI Emerging Markets Index ETF rose 0.02%. Eurex KOSPI 200 futures increased by 0.2%.

Kim Seok-hwan, a researcher at Mirae Asset Securities, said, "The KOSPI is expected to show cautious sentiment ahead of Chairman Powell's Senate hearing. However, the strength of Nvidia and TSMC is likely to be favorable for domestic semiconductor stocks due to positive views and major inflows."

Han Ji-young, a researcher at Kiwoom Securities, analyzed, "It is undeniable that foreigners currently hold the key to the direction of supply and demand in the domestic stock market. They have been intensively net buying the Korean stock market, focusing on sectors benefiting from improved earnings and export momentum and value-up."

He added, "In the future, their net buying is expected to be selective, considering changes in fundamentals such as earnings, rather than simply buying the entire Korean stock market. Considering that the second-quarter earnings season is starting, it is worth paying attention to sectors such as non-ferrous metals, wood, machinery, semiconductors, automobiles, and IT hardware, where annual operating profit forecasts for this year are being revised upward after July."

Meanwhile, the 1-month non-deliverable forward (NDF) USD/KRW exchange rate in New York was 1,382 won. Considering this, the USD/KRW exchange rate is expected to start 2 won lower compared to the previous day.