The KOSPI index closed lower as institutional and foreign investors turned net sellers following the downgrade of the U.S. credit rating.
On May 19, the KOSPI index ended trading at 2,603.42, down 23.45 points (0.89%) from the previous day. Trading volume was 309.7 million shares, and the trading value was provisionally tallied at 6.6982 trillion won.
On this day, the KOSPI index opened lower due to the impact of the downgrade of the U.S. credit rating. Credit rating agency Moody's decided to downgrade the U.S. sovereign credit rating by one notch from 'Aaa' to 'Aa1', citing fiscal deficit and debt ratio issues. As a result, the KOSPI index started lower and briefly fell below the 2,600 mark during the session, but managed to maintain the 2,600 level thanks to net buying by individual investors.
By investor type, institutions and foreigners were net sellers of 194.7 billion won and 113.8 billion won, respectively, while individuals were net buyers of 298.5 billion won. In the futures market, institutions were net sellers of 226.7 billion won, while foreigners and individuals were net buyers of 140.2 billion won and 90 billion won, respectively. In program trading, there was a net buying of 500 million won in arbitrage trades, and a net selling of 255.1 billion won in non-arbitrage trades.
By sector, most industries declined. The securities sector dropped by 2.38%, electrical and electronics by 1.62%, IT services by 1.51%, food, beverage and tobacco by 1.41%, general services by 1.38%, metals by 1.37%, transportation and storage by 1.19%, entertainment and culture by 1.16%, manufacturing by 1.06%, machinery and equipment by 0.97%, medical precision by 0.91%, and paper and wood by 0.87%. In contrast, the insurance sector rose by 1.87%, pharmaceuticals by 1.25%, and electricity and gas by 0.96%.
Among large-cap stocks, performance was mixed. Samsung Electronics and SK hynix fell by 1.76% and 2.49%, respectively, while Hyundai Motor declined by 1.44%, Hanwha Aerospace by 0.24%, Kia by 0.54%, NAVER by 1.28%, and Hanwha Ocean by 2.83%. On the other hand, Samsung Biologics rose by 2.59%, LG Energy Solution by 0.34%, HD Hyundai Heavy Industries by 0.95%, and KB Financial Group by 1.5%.
On this day, 240 stocks rose, 646 stocks fell, and 50 stocks remained unchanged. Two stocks hit the upper price limit.
The KOSDAQ index also closed lower, pressured by net selling from institutions and foreigners. The KOSDAQ index finished at 713.75, down 11.32 points (1.56%) from the previous day. By investor type, institutions and foreigners were net sellers of 183 billion won and 36.8 billion won, respectively, while individuals were net buyers of 238.4 billion won.
Among the top KOSDAQ stocks by market capitalization, more stocks declined than rose. Ecopro BM fell by 0.64%, HLB by 4.47%, Rainbow Robotics by 8.43%, Peptron by 2.12%, Hugel by 1.73%, Classys by 0.83%, LIG Chem Bio by 3.01%, Samchundang Pharm by 5.88%, and Leeno Industrial by 3.6%. Meanwhile, Alteogen rose by 0.63%, Ecopro by 0.11%, and PharmaResearch by 1.56%.
Meanwhile, in the Seoul foreign exchange market, the won/dollar exchange rate was trading at 1,397.9 won, down 2.1 won from the previous day.
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