'Aftermath of Martial Law Situation' KOSPI Falls Below 2500... KOSDAQ Drops Over 2%

The aftermath of President Yoon Suk-yeol's 'martial law incident' shocked the domestic stock market on the 4th. The KOSPI and KOSDAQ both started nearly 2% lower compared to the previous day.

President Yoon Suk-yeol declared martial law. On the morning of the 4th, after the National Assembly voted to lift the martial law, news related to martial law appeared on the monitor in the Hana Bank dealing room in Jung-gu, Seoul. Due to the impact of martial law, the KOSPI opened down 1.97%, and the exchange rate started at 1,418 won that day. Photo by Jo Yong-jun

As of 9:46 a.m. that day, the KOSPI was trading at 2,453.19, down 46.91 points (1.88%) from the previous day. The index opened at 2,450.76, down 49.34 points (1.97%), continuing its downward trend. Currently, foreigners have sold stocks worth 298.1 billion KRW. Individuals and institutions bought stocks worth 218.5 billion KRW and 70.4 billion KRW, respectively.

Among the top market capitalization stocks, Korea Zinc (8.95%) and Kakao (8.61%) are rising. Most stocks, including KB Financial (-5.73%), Samsung Fire & Marine Insurance (-5.29%), LG Chem (-3.89%), Shinhan Financial Group (-3.72%), Samsung Life Insurance (-3.67%), LG Chem (-3.54%), LG Energy Solution (-2.90%), NAVER (-2.39%), and POSCO Holdings (-2.00%), are on a downward trend.

By sector, steel and metal (2.80%), telecommunications (0.38%), and food and beverages (0.30%) are rising. Most sectors, including electric and gas utilities (-6.51%), insurance (-4.23%), construction (-4.01%), finance (-2.97%), distribution (-2.87%), machinery (-2.86%), securities (-2.71%), and medical precision (-2.61%), are declining.

Earlier, President Yoon Suk-yeol declared martial law around 10:30 p.m. the previous day but accepted the National Assembly's resolution to lift the martial law, which was passed with the majority of 190 members present, and lifted it six hours after the declaration.

Meanwhile, on the 3rd (local time) in the New York stock market, the blue-chip-focused Dow Jones Industrial Average (Dow) closed at 44,705.53, down 76.47 points (0.17%) from the previous trading day. The large-cap-focused S&P 500 index rose 2.73 points (0.05%) to 6,049.88, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq index rose 76.96 points (0.4%) to 19,480.91, marking a new all-time high again. Korean companies listed on the New York Stock Exchange, such as Coupang (-3.7%), POSCO Holdings (-4.36%), KT (-0.39%), and KB Financial (-1.67%), showed weakness due to the impact of President Yoon's martial law declaration.

At the same time, the KOSDAQ index recorded 675.40, down 15.40 points (2.23%) from the previous session. The index opened at 677.59, down 13.21 points (1.91%), and widened its losses. Foreigners and institutions were net buyers of 28 billion KRW and 19.4 billion KRW, respectively. Individuals alone sold stocks worth 47.3 billion KRW.

Among the top market capitalization stocks, Enchem (0.64%) and HPSP (0.58%) are rising. Rainbow Robotics (-3.63%), Alteogen (-3.38%), EcoPro BM (-3.12%), Samchundang Pharm (-3.05%), Classys (-2.99%), Celltrion Pharm (-2.94%), and ST Pharm (-2.67%) are declining.