KOSPI rose for the third consecutive trading day, recovering to the 6800th level. This was thanks to shareholder return announcements from SK Hynix and Samsung Electronics stimulating investor sentiment in semiconductor stocks. Experts in the financial investment industry predicted that the warmth starting from news of expanded shareholder returns would spread throughout the entire stock market.
On the 20th, KOSPI closed at 6852.58, up 381.41 points (5.89%) from the previous trading day. KOSPI, which started higher on this day, widened its gains during trading, triggering a buy-side sidecar (futures market circuit breaker). This marks the 49th time this year that the sidecar (futures market circuit breaker) has been activated. If counting only the buy-side sidecar, it is the 24th time.
The rise in KOSPI on this day was led by SK Hynix and Samsung Electronics. SK Hynix closed at 1.691 million won, up 191,000 won (12.73%) from the previous trading day. This was influenced by SK Hynix's announcement after the market close the previous day that it would acquire and retire 40 trillion won worth of its own shares. Additionally, SK Hynix announced plans to return more than 50% of its free cash flow (FCF) generated between 2025 and 2027. This expands the existing shareholder return plan, which was within 50%, to "more than 50%."
Samsung Electronics also rose 9.49% on news that it would proceed with a shareholder return program worth 100 trillion won. On this day, MoneyToday reported exclusively that Samsung Electronics plans to convene its board of directors within this month and approve major shareholder return measures such as special cash dividends.
Lee Kyung-min, head of the FICC Research Division at Daishin Securities, said, "Expectations for large-scale shareholder returns acted as upward pressure on both the semiconductor sector and the domestic stock market overall." He continued, "The U.S. Treasury's expansion of treasury bond buybacks alleviated external uncertainties," adding that "long-term U.S. Treasury yields also fell." Buybacks are a system where existing government bonds traded in the market are repurchased to increase liquidity in specific maturity segments and ensure smooth market functioning.
In the KOSPI market, foreign investors made net purchases of 1.7229 trillion won. Retail investors and institutional investors made net sales of 2.2724 trillion won and 490.4 billion won, respectively.
Among KOSPI sectors, electrical & electronics and manufacturing rose 9.19% and 7.10%, respectively, closing on a strong note. Securities and retail rose more than 4%, while insurance and IT (information technology) rose more than 3%. On the other hand, transportation & warehousing, telecommunications, and construction fell by more than 1%.
Among KOSPI market capitalization top stocks, SK Square, which holds stakes in SK Hynix, surged 11.85%. Samsung Electronics preferred shares rose 10.07%. Samsung C&T and Samsung Life Insurance rose 7.78% and 7.61%, respectively. On the other hand, KB Financial Group and Shinhan Financial Group fell 3.85% and 3.71%, respectively.
KOSDAQ recorded 840.89, up 16.43 points (1.99%) from the previous trading day.
In the KOSDAQ market, institutional investors and retail investors made net purchases of 112.3 billion won and 1.72 trillion won, respectively. Foreign investors made net sales of 128.1 billion won.
Among KOSDAQ sectors, general services rose 5.38%. Telecommunications rose 3.59%, while finance and IT rose more than 2%. On the other hand, transportation equipment & parts fell 1.08%, while publishing/media, retail, and medical/precision instruments closed roughly flat.
Among KOSDAQ market capitalization top stocks, AlteoGen surged 11.86%. Avillion Bio rose 3.51%, and Samtong Pharmaceutical rose 1.78%. EcoPro BM and EcoPro rose 3.92% and 2.20%, respectively. On the other hand, HLB and ISC fell 5.23% and 4.86%, respectively.
On this day, the won/dollar exchange rate closed weekly trading at 1392.6 won, down 5.1 won from the previous day's closing price.
Im Jeong-eun, a researcher at KB Securities, said, "Today was a day that strengthened the foundation for recovery as some of the interest rate burden, which was the key variable in yesterday's correction, eased alongside news of SK Hynix's shareholder return." She added, "With favorable winds spreading across sectors overall, we place weight on the possibility that the recovery trend will continue."
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