Relief as US Tariff Pace Slows... KOSPI Rises Over 1%

Closed Higher After Four Sessions
Foreigners and Institutions Lead Net Buying

On the 22nd, both the KOSPI and KOSDAQ markets closed higher. Following the inauguration of U.S. President Donald Trump, expectations for a slowdown in the pace of universal tariff implementation appeared to act as a positive factor for the domestic stock market.

On that day, the KOSPI closed at 2,547.06, up 1.15% from the previous day. This is the highest closing price since November 11 of last year. Net purchases by foreigners and institutions drove the index up. Foreigners net bought 355 billion KRW, and institutions net bought 409.9 billion KRW. Individuals net sold 826.3 billion KRW.

Most of the top 10 market capitalization stocks closed higher. SK Hynix had the largest gain at 3.4%. Following were Kia at 1.9%, LG Energy Solution at 1.5%, Samsung Electronics at 1.5%, Samsung Biologics at 1.3%, and Hyundai Motor at 0.9%. Only NAVER (-0.2%) and HD Hyundai Heavy Industries (-3.9%) declined.

By sector, the machinery and equipment sector stood out with a 6.46% increase. Transportation and warehousing (3.20%), construction (3.05%), electrical and electronics (2.15%), and manufacturing (1.48%) also showed strength. Insurance (-1.69%), paper and wood (-0.93%), and electricity and gas (-0.65%) sectors fell.

The KOSDAQ index also closed at 732.31, up 0.86% from the previous day. This is also the highest closing price since November 8 of last year. Similar to the KOSPI market, foreigners and institutions were net buyers, purchasing 19.5 billion KRW and 66.4 billion KRW respectively. Individuals sold 94.3 billion KRW.

The top 10 market capitalization stocks showed mixed results. Alteogen (5.2%), Samchundang Pharmaceutical (4.3%), EcoPro BM (3.5%), and EcoPro (3.2%) rose, while Rainbow Robotics (-2.8%), Ligand Chem Bio (-1.2%), and HLB (-0.8%) declined. Classys closed at the same price as the previous day.

Among sectors, general services had the largest gain at 2.06%, followed by finance (1.99%), machinery and equipment (1.57%), transportation equipment and parts (1.42%), and electrical and electronics (1.36%). Publishing and media reproduction (-2.26%) and textiles and apparel (-2.25%) declined.

Ji-won Kim, a researcher at KB Securities, explained, "The relief over the slowdown in U.S. President Donald Trump's tariff policy was reflected, leading the KOSPI to rebound after four trading days. Foreigners switched to net buying in both markets after four trading days, and the won-dollar exchange rate falling more than 20 won this week also played a significant role."