On the 4th, the day President Lee Jae-myung emphasized his commitment to boosting the stock market by saying, "I will open the era of KOSPI 5000," the KOSPI index reached its highest level of the year. It regained the highest level since August of last year. The KOSDAQ also rose over 1%, surpassing the 750 mark for the first time in three months. Semiconductor stocks, empowered by a favorable wind from Nvidia, along with related stocks expected to benefit from the Lee Jae-myung government’s policies, showed strong performance.
On that day, the KOSPI index closed at 2770.84, up 71.87 points (2.66%) from the previous trading day. The index opened at 2737.92, which was up 38.95 points (1.44%) from the previous session, and increased its gains. Foreigners and institutions recorded net purchases of 1.5 trillion won and 204.6 billion won, respectively. Individuals sold off 1.22 trillion won. It is the first time since August 16 of last year that foreigners net purchased over 1 trillion won in KOSPI. The index rising to the 2770 level is also the first time since last August.
In the securities market, the leading semiconductor stocks, Samsung Electronics and SK hynix, were strong. This was thanks to optimism surrounding trade negotiations between the U.S. and China, which are expected to benefit from a favorable wind from Nvidia. In particular, SK hynix closed up 4.82% at 217,500 won. Samsung Electronics also rose 1.76%, and its preferred stock, Samsung Electronics Pref, increased by 2.48%. Overnight, Nvidia rose 2.8% on the New York stock exchange and reclaimed its position as the top company by market capitalization, surpassing Microsoft (MS).
In addition, Samsung Biologics, LG Energy Solution, Hanwha Aerospace, and Hyundai Motor also saw their stock prices rise. In contrast, Celltrion declined. Particularly, financial and securities stocks showed strength in light of President Lee's market-friendly promises. KB Financial closed at 107,900 won, up 7,900 won (7.90%) from the previous trading day.
On that day, the KOSDAQ index finished at 750.21, up 9.92 points (1.34%) from the previous trading day. In the KOSDAQ market, institutional investors made net purchases of 175.3 billion won. Foreigners bought 148.3 billion won worth of stocks, while individuals sold off 304.5 billion won.
Among the top 10 KOSDAQ market capitalization stocks, Alteogen, ECOPRO BM, Ecopro, Rainbow Robotics, PharmaResearch, and CLASSYS rose. Conversely, HLB, HUGEL, and LigaChem Biosciences declined. Peptron recorded a lower limit. This was due to increased uncertainty regarding its collaboration with its major partner Eli Lilly.
On that day, stocks related to President Lee showed mixed movements in the Korean stock market. The 'relationship stocks,' which had surged due to personal ties to President Lee Jae-myung, were weak. Sangji Construction recorded a lower limit during the day and closed down 24.61%. Sangji Construction is mentioned as a related stock because its former outside director, Im Moo-young, is known to be an associate of the president.
In contrast, stocks benefiting from policies and promises showed strength. Notably, the securities sector benefitted from expectations of a market boost following President Lee's election. BOOKOOK Securities rose 22.67%, while SK Securities (11.34%), Shinyoung Securities (12.62%), and Mirae Asset Securities (13.25%) also increased.
Stocks related to artificial intelligence (AI), which were President Lee's first pledge, also showed strength. Konan Technology recorded a price limit increase, while Saltlux rose 23.10%. Additionally, KONA I, which has been identified as a stock related to local currency, also hit the price limit, along with URACLE (11.93%), WebCash (13.16%), and COOCON (24.43%).
Additionally, as reforms such as the amendment of the Commercial Act are pursued to bolster the stock market, there are expectations for holding companies to be revalued, leading to their stock prices sequentially recording the highest prices in a year. Stock prices for Hanwha (9.73%), CJ (12.19%), LS (7.78%), SK (10.59%), and LG (4.52%) increased. The Democratic Party of Korea previously stated that it would seek to enhance corporate governance transparency and amend commercial laws to boost the domestic stock market during the presidential election period.
Lee Kyung-min, a researcher at DAISHIN SECURITIES, noted, "He has declared his intention to handle the amendment of the Commercial Act within 2 to 3 weeks of taking office, which is driving gains mainly in undervalued sectors," and he explained that "the expectations for a phone call between the U.S. and Chinese leaders also helped pull the global stock market up, which in turn acted favorably on the stock market."
As of 3:30 p.m. in the Seoul foreign exchange market, the exchange rate of the won against the U.S. dollar (won/dollar exchange rate) recorded 2,369.5 won, down 3.6 won from the previous day. The exchange rate started at 1,375.0 won, up 1.9 won from the previous trading day, then fluctuated before sharply declining just before the weekly transaction closing, around 3 p.m. It is interpreted that the influx of foreign funds into the stock market led to a decline in the exchange rate.