KOSPI and KOSDAQ Rise Together Despite U.S. Credit Rating Downgrade

The KOSPI index is on an upward trend on the morning of May 20. Despite a downgrade in the U.S. credit rating, all three major U.S. stock indices in New York closed slightly higher, helping the Korean stock market recover losses from the previous day.

As of 9:25 a.m. that day, the KOSPI was trading at 2,617.54, up 14.12 points (0.54%) from the previous day. The index opened at 2,622.68, up 19.26 points (0.74%). Foreign investors made a net purchase of 18.8 billion KRW, while institutions and individuals sold 3 billion KRW and 8.6 billion KRW worth of shares, respectively.

On the 20th, employees at the dealing room of Hana Bank headquarters in Jung-gu, Seoul, are monitoring the stock market and exchange rates. At 9:02 a.m. that day, the KOSPI index started at 2619.53, up 16.11 points (0.62%) from the previous close, continuing its upward trend. Photo by Jo Yongjun

Among large-cap stocks, Doosan Enerbility (5.64%), SK Hynix (4.06%), Shinhan Financial Group (1.54%), Samsung Electronics (1.34%), Samsung Biologics (0.88%), Celltrion (0.84%), Hyundai Motor (0.79%), and Kia (0.77%) are rising. In contrast, HD Hyundai Heavy Industries (-4.31%), LG Energy Solution (-3.09%), HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering (-1.56%), Hanwha Ocean (-1.52%), Hanwha Aerospace (-1.07%), and NAVER (-0.65%) are declining.

By sector, machinery and equipment (2.82%), securities (2.06%), electricity and gas (2.00%), entertainment and culture (1.63%), paper and wood (1.21%), electrical and electronics (1.14%), and medical precision instruments (1.01%) are showing gains. On the other hand, chemicals (-1.34%) and transportation equipment parts (-0.71%) are weak.

On May 19 (local time) in the New York stock market, the Dow Jones Industrial Average, which focuses on blue-chip stocks, closed at 42,792.07, up 137.33 points (0.32%) from the previous session. The S&P 500, which tracks large-cap stocks, rose 5.22 points (0.09%) to 5,963.6, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq gained 4.36 points (0.02%) to close at 19,215.46. On the first trading day after the U.S. credit rating downgrade, all three major U.S. indices posted slight gains.

At the same time, the KOSDAQ index was at 720.76, up 7.01 points (0.98%) from the previous close. The index opened at 719.36, up 5.61 points (0.79%). Foreign investors made a net purchase of 18.9 billion KRW, and individuals bought 4.8 billion KRW net. Institutions recorded a net sale of 5.3 billion KRW.

Among the top KOSDAQ stocks by market capitalization, Silicontwo (8.40%), ABL Bio (6.20%), Kolon TissueGene (4.74%), Peptron (4.60%), Legochem Bio (3.70%), JYP Ent. (2.91%), PharmaResearch (2.49%), LIG Nex1 (2.45%), SM (2.44%), Alteogen (2.35%), and Rainbow Robotics (1.29%) are rising. In contrast, Samchundang Pharm (-4.31%), Ecopro (-2.27%), Ecopro BM (-2.13%), and Voronoi (-0.66%) are declining.