[Good Morning Stock Market] US Stocks Show Mixed Trends Amid Geopolitical Tensions... "Domestic Market Likely to Remain Cautious"

As geopolitical tensions escalated, the U.S. New York stock market showed mixed trends, raising the likelihood that the domestic market will also remain cautious on the 13th. However, since it is earnings season, differentiated movements by individual stocks are expected.

[Image source= Xinhua News Agency]

On the 12th (local time) in the New York stock market, the Dow Jones Industrial Average, centered on blue-chip stocks, closed at 39,357.01, down 140.53 points (0.36%) from the previous trading day. The S&P 500 index, focused on large-cap stocks, ended the session at 5,344.39, up 0.23 points (0%). The tech-heavy Nasdaq index rose 35.31 points (0.21%) to 16,780.61.

That day, the New York stock market was influenced by rising military tensions in the Middle East. There were forecasts that Iran would strike Israel within 24 hours, and news emerged that the Israeli military raised its alert level to the highest. In particular, the U.S. government decided to dispatch an aircraft carrier strike group and submarines to the Middle East.

Additionally, the upcoming release of key economic indicators such as the July Producer Price Index (PPI), Consumer Price Index (CPI), and retail sales on the 15th also had an impact.

Seokhwan Kim, a researcher at Mirae Asset Securities, explained, "The U.S. stock market closed mixed due to increased uncertainty from rising geopolitical tensions in the Middle East and the Russia-Ukraine war, along with cautious sentiment ahead of major economic data releases this week."

Among individual stocks, Nvidia rose 4.08%. In addition, Super Micro Computer jumped 6.33%, and AI-related stocks such as Apple (0.71%) and Microsoft (0.19%) also showed gains. Alongside this, major defense stocks rose amid heightened geopolitical tensions.

The Morgan Stanley Capital International (MSCI) Korea Index Exchange-Traded Fund (ETF) rose 0.4%, and the Emerging Markets Index ETF increased by 0.3%. Eurex KOSPI 200 futures rose 0.3%. The domestic stock market is also expected to remain cautious. However, since AI-related stocks showed strength in the New York market, semiconductor-related stocks are expected to show positive trends. Furthermore, as it is earnings season domestically, differentiated movements by individual stocks are anticipated.

Researcher Seokhwan Kim said, "The semiconductor rebound centered on Nvidia is positive, but the expansion of geopolitical tensions in the Middle East is one of the factors that does not support ‘open-minded’ buying," adding, "With high cautious sentiment, limited fluctuations are expected."

He also advised that it is necessary to pay attention to the related areas as volatility in supply and demand is expected to increase due to the MSCI regular index rebalancing results. Jihyun Kim, a researcher at Kiwoom Securities, explained, "With the narrowing gains in the U.S. stock market, the upside is limited, and volatility in supply and demand is expected to increase due to the MSCI regular index rebalancing results," adding, "LS ELECTRIC has been newly included, and SK IE Technology has been removed." He further noted, "The rebalancing will take place on the 30th of this month, and the effective date of the actual index change is the 2nd of next month."