[Good Morning Stock Market] "US Stock Market Ends Mixed... Domestic Market Faces Ongoing Currency Exchange Pressure"

As the US stock market closed mixed, the Korean stock market on the 27th is expected to continue a trend of profit-taking pressure due to the won-dollar exchange rate burden and sector differentiation.

A trader is working at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in the United States. Photo by Getty Images Yonhap News.

On the 26th (local time), the three major US New York stock indices closed mixed near the flat line. The Dow Jones Industrial Average, centered on blue-chip stocks, closed at 43,325.8, up 28.77 points (0.07%) from the previous trading day. The S&P 500, focused on large-cap stocks, fell 2.45 points (0.04%) to 6,037.59, and the Nasdaq, centered on technology stocks, dropped 10.77 points (0.05%) to 20,020.36. Ji-won Kim, a researcher at KB Securities, analyzed, "Despite the Fed's 'hawkish cut,' the US stock market, which had been steadily rising, showed signs of consolidation along with profit-taking."

By individual stocks, Apple rose 0.32%. Wedbush Securities raised its target price from $300 to $325, expecting a large demand for iPhone replacements due to Apple's artificial intelligence (AI) service, 'Apple Intelligence.' Nvidia fell 0.21%, and Tesla dropped 1.76%. Alibaba rose 0.58%, buoyed by the news that Shinsegae Group is establishing a joint venture in Korea and incorporating Gmarket and AliExpress Korea as subsidiaries to strengthen its e-commerce market presence.

Regarding the domestic stock market outlook, researcher Ji-won Kim said, "Domestically, the burden of the won-dollar exchange rate, which has been hitting new highs daily, and the dividend drop issue today will add to profit-taking pressure," adding, "The reemergence of political risks is also a burden. Since an unfavorable environment is expected to continue for the time being, a conservative view is maintained."

Seong-hoon Lee, a researcher at Kiwoom Securities, said, "With large tech stocks adjusting in the US stock market the day before and additional year-end supply-demand factors such as dividend drops, downward pressure on the domestic stock market is inevitable," and analyzed, "As foreign capital outflows accelerate due to the exchange rate, the domestic stock market will continue to be highly sensitive to exchange rate movements."

Lee added, "From a sector perspective, the differentiation between high exchange rate beneficiaries and non-beneficiaries will continue. In fact, based on monthly returns this month, among 26 sectors, shipbuilding (12.8%), information technology (IT) & hardware (9.6%), cosmetics, apparel & toys (4.0%), and automobiles (3.4%) recorded the highest returns," and added, "If the current high exchange rate level continues, it will be reflected in earnings with about a one-quarter lag, so it is advantageous to select stocks within high exchange rate beneficiary sectors."