KOSPI Ends Slightly Lower... Foreign Investors Continue Net Buying

Seven Consecutive Days of Net Buying
KOSDAQ Closes Slightly Higher

The KOSPI remained at the 3,240 level and closed slightly lower. However, net purchases by foreign investors continued for the seventh consecutive trading day.

On July 31, the KOSPI closed at 3,245.44, down 0.28% from the previous day. After opening higher at 3,275.78 and rising to as much as 3,288.26, the index turned downward as profit-taking sell orders emerged.

By investor type, foreign investors and individuals recorded net purchases of 349 billion KRW and 358.8 billion KRW, respectively. Institutions recorded net sales of 825.2 billion KRW.

By industry, more sectors declined than rose. The largest drops were seen in distribution (-2.50%), pharmaceuticals (-1.81%), electricity and gas (-1.24%), and chemicals (-1.21%). On the other hand, entertainment and culture (2.53%), machinery and equipment (2.09%), non-metallics (1.65%), and construction (1.27%) posted gains.

Among the top 10 stocks by market capitalization, most showed weak performance. Hyundai Motor (-4.4%), LG Energy Solution (-2.6%), Samsung Biologics (-2.6%), Samsung Electronics (-1.7%), KB Financial Group (-1.5%), and Celltrion (-1.0%) declined. HD Hyundai Heavy Industries (4.0%), SK Hynix (3.8%), Doosan Enerbility (2.6%), and Hanwha Aerospace (1.6%) rose.

The KOSDAQ closed at 805.24, up 0.20%. After opening slightly higher, it turned downward during the session but rebounded in the afternoon to regain its earlier gains.

Similarly, foreign investors and individuals recorded net purchases of 31.5 billion KRW and 24.9 billion KRW, respectively. Institutions recorded net sales of 34.1 billion KRW.

Unlike the KOSPI, more sectors on the KOSDAQ rose than fell. The largest increases were in textiles and apparel (4.07%), entertainment and culture (4.03%), and other manufacturing (1.64%). In contrast, paper and wood (-2.48%), non-metallics (-1.92%), and finance (-1.11%) declined.

Among the top 10 stocks by market capitalization, more declined than rose. Samchundang Pharm (-3.5%), Ecopro (-2.8%), Ecopro BM (-2.7%), Rainbow Robotics (-1.6%), Rigakem Bio (-0.5%), and HLB (-0.4%) saw notable drops. Peptron (2.0%), Hugel (1.9%), PharmaResearch (1.0%), and Alteogen (0.3%) rose.