[Good Morning Stock Market] US Stocks Close Mixed... "Korean Market Focuses on Semiconductors and Bio"

As the three major indices of the U.S. New York stock market closed mixed, on the 20th, the Korean stock market is expected to be driven by factors such as changes in foreign demand and supply centered on the semiconductor sector and whether there will be a low-price buying spree in biotech stocks that plunged the previous day.

UPI Yonhap News

On the 19th (local time), in the New York stock market, the blue-chip-focused Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at 43,268.94, down 120.66 points (0.28%) from the previous trading day. The large-cap-focused S&P 500 index rose 23.36 points (0.4%) to 5,916.98, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq index increased by 195.66 points (1.04%) to close at 18,987.47.

Although concerns over the war expanded due to Ukraine's long-range missile launch and Russia's mention of the possibility of using nuclear weapons, investor sentiment was partially alleviated by expectations ahead of the third-quarter earnings announcement of Nvidia, the AI (Artificial Intelligence) leader.

Kim Seok-hwan, a researcher at Mirae Asset Securities, said, "Despite the geopolitical crisis, the Nasdaq index rose by more than 1% due to the strength of tech stocks, marking the largest increase among the major indices. Nvidia, which rose over 4%, led the market rebound centered on tech stocks, and Tesla also rose over 2%, driving the upward trend."

On this day, the Korean stock market is expected to start higher, supported by the strong performance of U.S. AI-related stocks such as Nvidia, a decline in the won-dollar exchange rate, and a drop in the U.S. 10-year Treasury yield, reflecting an improvement in the external environment.

Han Ji-young, a researcher at Kiwoom Securities, said, "Key points to watch will be changes in foreign demand and supply centered on the semiconductor sector such as Samsung Electronics, and whether there will be a low-price buying spree in biotech stocks that plunged the previous day. There are stocks in machinery, transportation, utilities, software, and shipbuilding sectors that foreigners have been net buying this month. Considering increasing the weight of sectors with continuous foreign net buying is also an alternative."