KOSPI Closes Above 4,700 for the First Time Ever... Sets New Record for 9 Consecutive Sessions

KOSPI Closes at 4,723.10 on Institutional Buying
Rotational Buying in Power, Nuclear Energy, and Finance
KOSDAQ Ends Below 940 Mark

On January 14, the KOSPI closed above the 4,700 mark for the first time in history. Since January 2, the KOSPI has set new record-high closing prices for nine consecutive trading days, continuing an unprecedented upward rally.

Yonhap News Agency

On this day, the KOSPI index closed at 4,723.10, up 0.65% from the previous trading day. The index opened at 4,685.11, down 0.16% from the previous session, initially expanded its gains right after the opening, but soon reversed and fluctuated as it searched for direction. However, after switching back to an upward trend in the afternoon, it maintained its gains and finished trading at a record high.

Institutional investors drove the index higher. They were the sole net buyers, purchasing 602.3 billion won and leading the rally. In contrast, individual investors and foreigners sold 432.7 billion won and 387 billion won, respectively, taking profits.

By sector, retail (2.85%), securities (2.82%), textiles & apparel (1.80%), construction (1.64%), medical & precision instruments (1.55%), insurance (1.52%), machinery & equipment (1.33%), and finance (1.25%) posted the largest gains. On the other hand, electricity & gas (-3.24%), metals (-2.07%), transportation equipment & parts (-0.96%), pharmaceuticals (-0.90%), and IT services (-0.85%) ended lower.

Among the top market capitalization stocks, Samsung Electronics, ranked first, rose 1.96% to close at 140,300 won, while SK Hynix, ranked second, gained 0.54% to finish at 742,000 won. Other notable gainers included Samsung Biologics (1.00%), Hyundai Motor (1.35%), SK Square (2.11%), and Doosan Enerbility (2.99%). LG Energy Solution (-1.14%), Hanwha Aerospace (-1.01%), and HD Hyundai Heavy Industries (-4.65%) showed weakness.

KB Securities analysts Lim Jeongeun and Tae Yunseon explained, "In addition to the rally in semiconductors, rotational buying in power, nuclear energy, finance, holding companies, cosmetics, and consumer goods sectors expanded the index's gains."

On the same day, the KOSDAQ closed at 942.18, down 0.72% from the previous session. The index started at 951.03, up 0.22% from the previous session, and at one point in the morning reached as high as 951.03. However, it soon reversed course, continued to decline, and fell to as low as 937.72 late in the session.

Foreign and institutional investors led the decline by selling 274.5 billion won and 157.1 billion won, respectively. Individual investors purchased 428 billion won.

By sector, general services (-2.49%) saw the largest drop, followed by transportation equipment & parts (-1.53%), finance (-1.52%), chemicals (-1.34%), and pharmaceuticals (-1.29%). Conversely, transportation & storage (6.52%), non-metallic minerals (3.76%), machinery & equipment (0.88%), and textiles & apparel (0.82%) recorded gains.

Among the top market capitalization stocks, Alteogen (-2.20%), Ecopro BM (-3.73%), Ecopro (-3.19%), ABL Bio (-1.54%), Kolon TissueGene (-2.45%), Legochem Bio (-3.84%), Samchundang Pharm (-6.68%), and Peptron (-8.03%) all plunged. Only Rainbow Robotics (1.21%) and HLB (0.96%) posted modest gains.

Analysts Lim Jeongeun and Tae Yunseon noted, "It will be important to watch how tonight's earnings releases from Bank of America (BofA), Wells Fargo, and Citigroup, as well as tomorrow's results from TSMC, will impact the market."