KOSPI Recovers 4,000 Level... Opens Up 1.53%

Maintaining the 4,000-Point Level
Secondary Battery Stocks Remain Weak

The KOSPI opened higher, recovering the 4,000-point level. The market rebounded, recouping the previous day's sharp losses, following the positive momentum from the overnight rebound in the US stock market.

On December 19, the KOSPI opened at 4,055.78, up 1.53% from the previous day. As of 9:24 a.m., it was maintaining the '4,000-point' level at 4,012.50.

By investor type, individuals and institutions recorded net purchases of 62.7 billion won and 35 billion won, respectively. Foreign investors recorded net sales of 88.6 billion won.

Almost all sectors were on the rise. There were many sectors that rose more than 1%, including entertainment·culture (2.91%), medical·precision instruments (1.12%), securities (1.09%), and machinery·equipment (1.03%). Only the chemical sector declined slightly by 0.13%.

Most of the top 10 stocks by market capitalization were also rising. Hanwha Aerospace (2.7%) and SK Hynix (2.1%) both gained more than 2%. Doosan Enerbility (1.6%), HD Hyundai Heavy Industries (1.1%), KB Financial Group (0.5%), and Samsung Biologics (0.4%) also showed strength. On the other hand, LG Energy Solution fell by 2.9%. Samsung Biologics (-0.4%) and Kia (-0.2%) also declined slightly. Samsung Electronics and Hyundai Motor were little changed from the previous day, remaining flat.

The KOSDAQ also started at 909.70, up 0.93% from the previous day. However, as of 9:24 a.m., it had turned downward to 900.17.

In the KOSDAQ market, only individuals showed net purchases, amounting to 147.3 billion won. Foreign investors and institutions recorded net sales of 103 billion won and 23.1 billion won, respectively.

Again, most sectors were on the rise. General services (1.09%), entertainment·culture (1.02%), non-metal (0.79%), and metal (0.63%) saw notable gains. However, financial (-2.37%) and food·beverage·tobacco (-0.70%) sectors declined.

The top 10 stocks by market capitalization were mixed. Secondary battery-related stocks such as Ecopro (-5.5%) and Ecopro BM (-3.8%) saw particularly sharp declines. Peptone (-2.7%) and HLB (-0.2%) also fell. On the other hand, Samchundang Pharm (2.2%), Alteogen (0.5%), Rainbow Robotics (0.4%), Aimed Bio (0.2%), and ABL Bio (0.1%) rose.

This trend is attributed to the US Consumer Price Index (CPI) coming in below market expectations, as well as bargain hunting in artificial intelligence (AI)-related stocks, which led to the overnight rebound in the US stock market. The domestic stock market is also expected to recover the previous day's sharp losses amid a sense of relief.

Meanwhile, on December 18 (local time) at the New York Stock Exchange, the S&P 500 index closed at 6,774.76, up 0.79% from the previous day. The tech-heavy Nasdaq index also rose 1.38% to 23,006.36. The Dow Jones Industrial Average increased by 0.14% to 47,951.85. This was attributed to the US Consumer Price Index (CPI) coming in below market expectations and bargain hunting in artificial intelligence (AI)-related stocks.