Burdened by high oil prices and interest rates, the KOSPI closed below the 6,600 level. As foreign investors and institutional investors pulled back their sentiment, selling volumes in the trillions of won were released, widening the decline despite share buybacks by Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix.
On the 2nd, the KOSPI closed at 6,562.72, down 273.08 points (3.99%) from the previous trading day.
In the KOSPI market (based on Korea Exchange), foreign investors and institutional investors sold net amounts of 1.9195 trillion won and 2.0433 trillion won, respectively. Retail investors bought net 2.3023 trillion won. Among institutional investors, other corporations purchased 1.6504 trillion won worth of shares, supported by share buybacks from Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix.
Lee Kyung-min, FICC deputy head at Daishin Securities, stated, "The domestic stock market showed weakness as risk-aversion sentiment expanded due to rising government bond yields in major countries and increasing international oil prices." He added, "Although buying pressure from other corporations centered on Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix supported the lower end of the index despite recent external uncertainties, it was insufficient to offset the selling pressure from foreign investors and institutional investors as macroeconomic burdens grew."
Among KOSPI sectors, transportation equipment and parts closed with weakness in the 5th% range. Electrical and electronics, machinery and equipment, manufacturing, and distribution each fell more than 4%. Construction, insurance, securities, and finance declined by over 3%. Metals, chemicals, transportation and warehousing, electricity and gas, and communications dropped by more than 2%. Medical and precision instruments closed with slight gains, marking the only sector among all KOSPI industries to show positive performance.
All of the top 30 companies by market capitalization in the KOSPI closed lower. Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix each fell more than 4%. Among stocks linked through equity or business ties with them, SK Square dropped over 7%, Samsung Life Insurance fell over 5%, and Samsung C&T declined over 4%. Hyundai Motor and Kia plummeted by more than 5% due to weak electric vehicle sales. Last month, Hyundai Motor and Kia sold 1.78405 million vehicles in the U.S., a 0.6% decrease compared to the same period last year. LG Energy Solution, once a leading stock in secondary batteries that had recently rebounded, also fell more than 5%. Samsung Electro-Mechanics announced a 1 trillion won MLCC (multilayer ceramic capacitor) supply contract the previous day but still closed down over 2%. Benefiting from high interest rates and a strong won, KB Financial Group and Shinhan Financial Group each declined by around 1%, closing with slight weakness to limit losses.
The KOSDAQ closed at 803.98, down 17.27 points (2.10%) from the previous trading day.
In the KOSDAQ market, institutional investors sold off shares worth 231.9 billion won. Retail investors and foreign investors bought net amounts of 172.3 billion won and 62.9 billion won, respectively.
Among KOSDAQ sectors, finance fell more than 4%. Chemicals dropped over 3%, while pharmaceuticals, electrical and electronics, IT (information and communications) services, and manufacturing each declined by more than 2%. General services, metals, entertainment and culture, machinery and equipment, and medical and precision instruments fell by around 1%. Textiles and clothing and distribution closed with slight gains. Non-metallic products rose by over 1%.
Among the top KOSDAQ stocks by market capitalization, EcoPro BM dropped over 7%, and EcoPro fell over 5%. Altheagen, which signed a technology export contract worth up to 4.4 trillion won with a global pharmaceutical company, closed with slight gains. Semiconductor materials, components, and equipment stocks such as Juseung Engineering and IOTech closed with slight gains and rose by around 2%, respectively.
On this day, in the Seoul foreign exchange market, the won/dollar exchange rate closed at 1,368.7 won, down 1.7 won from the previous day's closing price, concluding weekly trading (at 3:30 p.m.).
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