Foreign investors, disappointed by SanDisk's earnings forecast, sold large-cap semiconductor stocks in net terms, causing the KOSPI to fall over 4% on the 6th. The KOSDAQ closed higher for five consecutive trading days, bolstered by net buying from individual investors, solidifying its upward trend. Attention now turns to whether investment sentiment toward AI (artificial intelligence) and semiconductor stocks will recover following NAVER's earnings announcement tomorrow (7th).
On this day, the KOSPI closed at 6,296.38 points, down 301.88 points (4.58%) from the previous trading session. After two consecutive days of gains, the KOSPI fell over 4% today, giving back most of its recent upward momentum.
In the KOSPI market, a buy-side sidecar (futures market circuit breaker) had triggered the previous day, sustaining a two-day rally; however, on this day, the morning decline in KOSPI 200 futures was significant enough to trigger a sell-side sidecar (futures market circuit breaker). This marks the 46th occurrence of a sidecar since the beginning of the year and the 24th time it has been triggered for selling.
Net selling by foreign investors, acting as institutional investors, drove the KOSPI's decline. Foreign investors had bought net over 1 trillion won the previous day but sold off 3.3329 trillion won on this day. Institutional investors sold net worthing 122 billion won. Individual investors, who had been net sellers the previous day due to profit-taking, recorded a net purchase of 3.3407 trillion won today.
Notably, leading semiconductor stocks and large-cap stocks saw significant declines. Samsung Electronics closed at 235,000 won, down 15,500 won (6.3%) from the previous day. SK Hynix closed at 1.495 million won, down 173,000 won (10.37%). SK Square fell over 13%, and Samsung Electro-Mechanics dropped over 9%, reflecting bearish sentiment. Hanwha Aerospace rose over 4%, while LG Energy Solution gained over 2%.
Lee Kyung-min, a researcher at Daishin Securities, stated, "Although SanDisk's data center revenue surged 1,298% year-on-year in its earnings report, the stock plummeted after it provided a next-quarter guidance of $10.3 billion to $10.8 billion, falling short of expectations." He further analyzed, "SanDisk's weak guidance dampened investment sentiment across the entire memory sector, leading to a sharp decline in domestic semiconductor stocks and driving overall index weakness."
The KOSDAQ closed at 801.67 points, up 2.08 points (0.26%), marking five consecutive days of gains. Although it opened at 797.44 points, down 2.15 points (0.27%), the index rose for five consecutive trading days starting from July 31, driven by net buying from individual investors.
Individual investor sentiment toward the KOSDAQ continued to support the upward trend. Individual investors who had been net buyers the previous day added another 85.4 billion won in net purchases today, while institutional investors joined in with 161.5 billion won in buying. In contrast, foreign investors sold off 247.8 billion won in net terms.
A key watch point is whether investment sentiment toward AI semiconductors will recover again following NAVER's earnings announcement on the 7th. Im Jeong-eun, a researcher at KB Securities, noted, "While major semiconductor earnings this week generally exceeded expectations, stock market reactions were mixed." She added, "It is necessary to monitor whether semiconductor stocks resume their rebound after NAVER's earnings release."
International investment bank Goldman Sachs maintained its previously stated 12-month KOSPI target of 12,000 points. Timothy M., Goldman Sachs' Senior Asia-Pacific Equity Strategist, stated in a report on the 4th, "We concluded that the market is reflecting more negative fundamentals than can be justified." He further predicted, "As positions are being unwound and news flows begin to support earnings forecasts, the upward trend will resume." The outlook suggests that the longest and most severe memory shortage in history could serve as a catalyst for rising market prices for Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix.
in STOCK
