KOSPI Edges Up in Earnings Season, KOSDAQ Declines

On April 28, ahead of earnings announcements from major domestic and international companies, the KOSPI index is showing a moderately strong trend, supported by buying from institutional and individual investors.

As of 9:46 a.m. on this day, the KOSPI was trading at 2,551.28, up 4.98 points (0.20%) from the previous day. The index opened at 2,551.23, up 4.93 points (0.19%). Currently, institutional investors and individuals have recorded net purchases of 18.7 billion won and 23.8 billion won, respectively. In contrast, foreign investors have sold a net 49.9 billion won.

Among the top stocks by market capitalization, Hanwha Ocean (up 3.56%), Samsung C&T (up 1.54%), Krafton (up 1.34%), NAVER (up 1.09%), Hanwha Aerospace (up 0.73%), Samsung Electronics (Preferred) (up 0.59%), HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering (up 0.56%), Samsung Biologics (up 0.39%), and LG Energy Solution (up 0.44%) are all rising. On the other hand, SK Hynix (down 1.08%), Meritz Financial Group (down 1.01%), Celltrion (down 0.76%), Hyundai Motor (down 0.42%), and Samsung Electronics (down 0.09%) are declining.

Dealers are working in the dealing room at the Hana Bank headquarters in Jung-gu, Seoul. Photo by Jo Yongjun

By industry, construction (up 2.12%), metals (up 1.48%), and IT services (up 1.14%) are showing strength. In contrast, paper & wood (down 0.63%), textiles & apparel (down 0.36%), and transportation & warehousing (down 0.31%) are weak.

On April 25 (local time), at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at 40,113.50, up 20.10 points (0.05%) from the previous session. The S&P 500, which focuses on large-cap stocks, finished at 5,525.21, up 40.44 points (0.74%), while the tech-heavy Nasdaq closed at 17,382.94, up 216.90 points (1.26%).

At the same time, the KOSDAQ index was at 723.53, down 6.16 points (0.84%) from the previous session. Although the index started at 730.58, up 0.89 points (0.12%), it has since turned downward. Foreign and institutional investors recorded net sales of 55.0 billion won and 40.4 billion won, respectively, while individual investors alone bought a net 103.3 billion won.

Among the top KOSDAQ stocks by market capitalization, EcoPro (up 4.51%), Pearl Abyss (up 3.16%), EcoPro BM (up 3.00%), and Silicon Two (up 2.88%) are rising. In contrast, HPSP (down 7.48%), Rigachem Bio (down 5.83%), Lino Industrial (down 4.43%), Kolon TissueGene (down 2.97%), Samchundang Pharm (down 2.37%), Hugel (down 2.08%), Rainbow Robotics (down 1.93%), Alteogen (down 1.49%), Celltrion Pharm (down 1.13%), and Classys (down 0.63%) are declining.