[Market Focus] Brokerage Stocks Fall Together Amid Escalating Iran Crisis

On the first trading day following the military conflict between the United States and Iran, Korean brokerage stocks are showing a broad decline in the domestic stock market on March 3.

As of 10:48 a.m. on this day, SangSangIn Securities is trading at 1,380 won per share, down 8.0% from the previous session. Hanwha Investment & Securities has fallen by 5.76%, SK Securities by 5.65%, and Hyundai Motor Securities is also showing a decline of over 5%. Kiwoom Securities (-4.61%), Mirae Asset Securities (-3.26%), NH Investment & Securities (-3.10%), and Samsung Securities (-2.72%) are also experiencing simultaneous declines.

This is interpreted as the result of a sharp escalation in geopolitical risks originating from the Middle East, following the U.S. airstrike on Iran over the past weekend and Iran's subsequent retaliation. On this day, the KOSPI opened at 6,165.15, down more than 1% from the previous trading day. In the early session, the index even temporarily fell below the 6,100 level.

In particular, the overall weakness in brokerage stocks is analyzed to have been triggered by concerns that the Korean stock market may face an adjustment for the time being due to global financial market uncertainties stemming from the Middle East.

However, SK Securities suggested an 'overweight' rating on the brokerage sector in its report on this day, citing recent developments such as the KOSPI surpassing the 6,000 mark and the daily average trading value exceeding 60 trillion won. Youngim Jang, a researcher at SK Securities, commented, "The key is money move," and added, "We believe the Korean financial market, which has traditionally been centered around banks, is at the beginning stage of shifting toward securities. It is time to re-rate the valuation accordingly."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.