On the 18th, the domestic stock market experienced a day of high volatility. The KOSPI index, which started rising by approaching the 2630 level, narrowed its gains and ultimately finished trading in the 2610 range. The KOSDAQ index, which also fluctuated between rises and falls, rallied towards the end of the day. On that day, there was even an incident where trading in the Korea Securities Market was delayed by 7 minutes.
The KOSPI index closed at 2612.34, up 1.65 points (0.06%) from the previous trading day. The index opened at 2627.27, which was a 0.64% increase from the previous close, and even rose to 2638.56. However, amid a tussle between individual and foreign investors, it surrendered its gains in the afternoon. Foreign investors and institutions were reported to have net purchased 441.7 billion won and 92.4 billion won worth of stocks, respectively, while individuals net sold 611.2 billion won.
In the Korea Securities Market, Samsung Electronics, which was up over 1% in early trading, eventually closed at the same price as the previous trading day. Samsung Electronics' preferred shares rose by 0.95%. SK hynix recorded a decline of 1.46% to 203,000 won, while stocks of Celltrion, Kia, NAVER, and others also fell. In contrast, Samsung Biologics and Hyundai Motor saw their stock prices rise.
On that day, Hanwha Group stocks showed strong performance. The increase in growth expectations was attributed to Hanwha Group's acquisition of the Australian company Austal, which owns shipyards in the U.S. Hanwha System closed at 41,300 won, up 6.31% from the previous trading day, after climbing to a record high of 42,550 won during intraday trading. Hanwha Ocean and Hanwha Aerospace also closed up 6.68% and 1.46%, respectively. Hanwha Engine rose by 13.71%.
There were also some errors that day. From 11:37 a.m. to 11:44 a.m., the KOSPI market's stock trading system halted, and no transactions were made. It was determined that the trading disruption related to Tongyang Steel Pipe affected other stocks as well. Afterward, the exchange's trading system was restored, and bids were received normally, but the rejection of bids for Tongyang Steel Pipe continued, leading the exchange to suspend trading of Tongyang Steel Pipe from 12:05 p.m.
When trading resumed at 3 p.m., Tongyang Steel Pipe's stock price soared to the upper limit. It closed at 1,119 won, up 29.97% from the previous trading day. This increase was larger than the prior stock price rise of 19.4% before the trading halt. The exchange is currently determining the cause of the technical issues.
The KOSDAQ index closed the day at 745.54, up 2.03 points (0.27%) from the previous trading day. In the KOSDAQ market, individual investors net purchased 51.5 billion won, while foreign and domestic institutions sold 37.7 billion won and 1.9 billion won worth of stocks, respectively.
Among the top 10 market capitalization stocks in the KOSDAQ, Alteogen, Ecopro BM, HLB, Ecopro, Rainbow Robotics, Kolon TissueGene, Hugel, and CLASSYS saw their stock prices rise. In contrast, Sam Chun Dang Pharm and LigaChem Biosciences experienced declines.
On that day, OncoNexus Therapeutics and its parent company JEIL PHARMACEUTICAL recorded upper limits. The influx of buying was analyzed to be due to the news that the next-generation cancer drug candidate Nesuparib developed by OncoNexus Therapeutics was designated as an orphan drug for gastric cancer and gastroesophageal junction cancer by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
In the Seoul foreign exchange market, as of 3:30 p.m., the won to dollar exchange rate recorded 1,452.9 won, up 5.0 won from the previous day. Immediately after opening, the exchange rate dropped to 1,438.0 won but rebounded above 1,440 won shortly after. The exchange rate continued to rise until the market closed, reaching 1,453.4 won.