The 17th, Seoul Hana Bank headquarters dealing room. /Courtesy of Yonhap News Agency

On the 17th, the domestic stock market is rising as expectations for easing tensions in the Middle East, heightened by military clashes between Israel and Iran, grow. The index reached above the 2990 level during trading, but it seems to be decreasing the pace of increase as the rally faces some resistance.

As of 11:48 a.m. on the day, the KOSPI index is currently at 2960.68, up 14.02 points (0.48%) from the previous transaction. The index peaked at 2998.62 during trading but the upward trend has somewhat calmed. If it surpasses the 3000 level, it will exceed 3000 for the first time in over 3 years and 5 months since January 3, 2022 (3010.77). The KOSPI 200 futures also surpassed 400 for the first time in about a year since July 11, 2022 (402.45).

Retail investors and institutional investors are each net buying 88.1 billion won and 5.4 billion won, respectively, lifting the index. Institutions initially showed a selling bias but turned to buying during trading. Foreign investors are solely net selling 83.5 billion won. The KOSPI 200 futures market is also showing a selling advantage of 80.7 billion won. Foreign investors have been selling off both spot and futures today after returning to a selling position due to concerns over short-term overheating the previous day.

The strength in the stock market is being led by semiconductor stocks. Samsung Electronics, SK hynix, and others are showing strong performance due to positive news from U.S. tech stocks and semiconductor indices. Hyundai Motor, Kia, and Doosan Enerbility are also rising. In contrast, Hanwha Aerospace and HD Hyundai Heavy Industries are declining.

At the same time, the KOSDAQ index is recording 777.41, up 0.13 points (0.02%) from the previous transaction. The index started at 780.08, up 2.82 points (0.36%) from the previous day, but has again reduced its gains, fluctuating in a narrow range.

In the KOSDAQ market, individuals are net buying 41.4 billion won, while foreign and institutional investors are net selling 31.3 billion won and 1.3 billion won, respectively.

Among the top market-cap stocks, Alteogen, Ecopro, Rainbow Robotics, PharmaResearch, and HUGEL are experiencing declines. CLASSYS, Sam Chun Dang Pharm, LEENO Industrial, and SILICON2 are rising.