Foreign Investors Lead the Rally with 1.7 Trillion Won in Net Buying
AI Semiconductor Momentum Continues
The KOSPI continued its rally for the 11th consecutive trading day, once again reaching an all-time high. Foreign investors took the lead in driving the rally, pouring nearly 2 trillion won into the market, while semiconductor stocks, which attracted strong buying interest, soared dramatically.
On September 16, the KOSPI closed at 3,449.62, up 42.31 points (1.24%) from the previous session. This marks an 11-day consecutive rise and the fifth straight session of record highs based on closing prices. The index, which opened at 3,421.13-up 13.82 points (0.41%)-continued to climb as foreign buying intensified. While individual investors sold off 1.7641 trillion won, foreign investors and institutions made net purchases of 1.709 trillion won and 78.7 billion won, respectively, driving the upward trend.
The top market cap stocks ended the session mixed. Doosan Enerbility (up 7.65%), Hanwha Aerospace (up 5.58%), SK Hynix (up 5.14%), Samsung Electronics (up 3.79%), and HD Hyundai Heavy Industries (up 0.90%) rose, while Kia (down 0.29%), Samsung Biologics (down 0.38%), KB Financial Group (down 1.51%), and LG Energy Solution (down 1.69%) declined.
Kim Ji-won, a researcher at KB Securities, commented, "Overnight in the New York stock market, positive reviews of Alphabet (Google)'s Gemini performance and concerns over semiconductor supply shortages led to a strong focus on semiconductor stocks."
On the same day, the KOSDAQ closed at 851.84, down 0.85 points (0.10%) from the previous session. The index had opened at 854.40, up 1.71 points (0.20%), but soon turned negative. While individual investors bought 271.8 billion won, foreign investors and institutions sold 214.6 billion won and 45 billion won, respectively.
The top KOSDAQ market cap stocks also closed mixed. Samchundang Pharm (up 4.07%), Ecopro BM (up 1.07%), HLB (up 0.39%), PharmaResearch (up 0.32%), and Alteogen (up 0.31%) rose, while Rainbow Robotics (down 3.01%), ABL Bio (down 2.78%), Legochem Bio (down 2.08%), Peptron (down 1.64%), and Ecopro (down 0.61%) fell.
By sector, display panels (up 9.74%), aerospace and defense (up 5.72%), semiconductor equipment (up 3.95%), machinery (up 3.30%), and software (up 2.10%) finished strong, while retail (down 1.82%), life sciences services (down 1.82%), building materials (down 1.66%), and food retail (down 1.53%) declined.
The upward trend in semiconductor stocks is expected to continue for the time being. Shin Hyun-yong, a researcher at Yuanta Securities, stated, "Historically, the factors driving record highs have led to improved investment sentiment across the market and tend to act as long-term drivers rather than short-term events. Expectations of improved semiconductor profits and a structural profit cycle shift due to the base effect are expected to support the market's upward momentum and sustain the record-high rally."
However, there are growing voices of caution regarding the divergence between the two main domestic indices. Researcher Kim pointed out, "Although the KOSPI continues to set new record highs, the number of declining stocks exceeds that of advancing ones, and the KOSDAQ has turned downward, indicating concerns about the market peaking. With caution ahead of the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting also emerging, investors should remain vigilant."
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