Impact of U.S.-China Trade Dispute, Losses Remain Limited
On October 13, the KOSPI closed at the 3,580 level due to selling by foreign investors and institutions. Although the index declined as U.S.-China trade tensions resurfaced, expectations for negotiations kept the losses limited. The KOSDAQ ended the day slightly higher.
On this day, the KOSPI finished at 3,584.55, down 0.72% from the previous trading session. The index opened at 3,550.08, a decrease of 1.68% from the previous close, and at one point during the session fell to 3,522.54, but managed to recover some losses by the end of trading.
Foreign investors and institutions sold 821.1 billion won and 447.5 billion won worth of shares, respectively, dragging the index down. In contrast, individual investors were net buyers, purchasing 1.1684 trillion won.
Most sectors ended lower. The largest declines were seen in securities (-2.40%), IT services (-1.96%), electrical and electronics (-1.41%), transportation equipment and parts (-1.38%), food, beverages, and tobacco (-1.24%), transportation and storage (-0.91%), insurance (-0.87%), finance (-0.81%), manufacturing (-0.74%), telecommunications (-0.53%), and pharmaceuticals (-0.53%). On the other hand, metals (5.67%), machinery and equipment (2.65%), entertainment and culture (2.21%), construction (0.60%), and chemicals (0.37%) saw gains. The volatility index rose by 17.28%.
Due to the renewed U.S.-China trade dispute, U.S. semiconductor stocks plunged on October 10 (local time), which also weighed on Samsung Electronics (-1.17%) and SK Hynix (-3.04%) on this day. However, analysts noted that considering the recent sharp rallies, the declines were not particularly steep. Among other major stocks by market capitalization, Hanwha Aerospace (-4.70%) and KB Financial Group (-1.06%) also closed lower. Meanwhile, LG Energy Solution (0.14%), Samsung Biologics (0.59%), Doosan Enerbility (4.16%), HD Hyundai Heavy Industries (0.39%), and Hyundai Motor (0.69%) ended higher.
On the same day, the KOSDAQ closed at 860.49, up 0.12% from the previous session. The index started at 845.76, down 1.60% from the previous close, and at one point fell to 840.28, but rebounded to finish higher.
Individual investors led the recovery by purchasing 116.8 billion won. Foreign investors and institutions were net sellers, offloading 100.6 billion won and 13.3 billion won, respectively.
Sector performance was mixed. Electrical and electronics (1.74%), chemicals (1.49%), finance (1.44%), entertainment and culture (1.30%), metals (1.03%), machinery and equipment (0.87%), publishing and media replication (0.56%), and manufacturing (0.55%) posted gains. In contrast, construction (-1.34%), medical and precision instruments (-1.25%), telecommunications (-1.21%), non-metals (-1.12%), pharmaceuticals (-0.69%), food, beverages, and tobacco (-0.44%), transportation and storage (-0.44%), and IT services (-0.40%) closed lower.
Among the top 10 KOSDAQ stocks by market capitalization, EcoPro BM (4.90%), Rainbow Robotics (4.40%), EcoPro (4.40%), PharmaResearch (3.14%), LIG ChemBio (0.53%), and HLB (6.35%) gained, while Alteogen (-3.69%), Peptron (-4.41%), ABL Bio (-2.56%), and Samchundang Pharm (-2.87%) ended lower.
KB Securities analysts Lim Jeongeun and Tae Yunseon commented, "While there is a possibility that concerns over U.S.-China tensions could ease more quickly than expected, it is also necessary to consider the potential for a correction following the recent short-term rally and an absorption of supply."
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