On the 17th, the domestic stock market fluctuated around the flat line before closing higher. The KOSPI index, which started at the 3200 level, immediately turned to decline, widening its drop before returning to an upward trend. The conflicting outlooks for Samsung Electronics and SK hynix, considered the leading stocks in the securities market, led to sharp fluctuations in stock prices, which is believed to have impacted the index.
On that day, the KOSPI index recorded a gain of 5.91 points (0.19%), closing at 3192.29. The index opened 0.47% higher at 3201.42, bolstered by the rebound in the New York stock market, but soon reversed to decline. Amid a constricted risk appetite due to concerns over U.S. government bond yields and the additional impact of a drop in the semiconductor index, it fell to as low as the 3150 level during the day.
In the securities market, foreign and institutional investors made net purchases of 50.1 billion won and 159.8 billion won, respectively. Individual investors finished the day as net sellers, with a surplus of 335.6 billion won. In the KOSPI 200 futures market, individuals and institutional investors made net purchases of 37 billion won and 55.3 billion won, respectively. Foreign investors showed a continuous net selling trend for two trading days in the spot market and five trading days in the futures market.
The KOSPI index has been fluctuating around the 3200 level recently while adjusting the leading stocks and neglected stocks according to the earnings season. Following Johnson & Johnson's earnings announcement the previous day, bargain-hunting flowed into the neglected bio sector, and leading stocks in defense, shipbuilding, and nuclear power also showed rotation based on performance outlook, influencing the index.
In particular, the sharp drop of SK hynix, regarded as a leading semiconductor stock, led to the decline of the index in the early market. SK hynix closed at 269,500 won, down 26,500 won (8.95%) from the previous trading day. Goldman Sachs' report is believed to have pressured SK hynix. Goldman Sachs downgraded its investment opinion on SK hynix from 'buy' to 'neutral' on that day. Related value chains, including HANMI Semiconductor and Hanwha Vision, also closed in the red.
On the other hand, Samsung Electronics, the top market capitalization stock in the securities market, recorded a gain of 2,000 won (3.09%) to close at 66,700 won. Although ASML's guidance underperformance caused a nearly 8% drop and worsened investment sentiment in the AI semiconductor sector, the upward trend continued due to Citigroup's target price increase and the resolution of Lee Jae-yong's legal risks. On that day, Samsung Electronics' transaction volume reached 25 trillion won. Samsung Biologics, Samsung Life Insurance, and Samsung Fire & Marine Insurance also rose.
Expectations for pharmaceutical and bio-related stocks saw a surge in bargain-hunting. Reports of robust second-quarter earnings from Johnson & Johnson in the U.S. influenced this sentiment. The announcement of approximately 250 billion won in revenue from 'Lecraza,' developed and exported by Yuhan Corporation listed on the securities market and Oscotec listed on the KOSDAQ, boosted expectations for royalty income. Overall, the sector showed strong performance, including Ildong Pharmaceutical and Peptron.
The defense and shipbuilding sectors saw a resumption of upward trends among leading stocks amid strong performance forecasts. With geopolitical tensions rising due to the Israeli airstrikes on the Syrian capital, defense stocks like Hanwha Aerospace, LIG Nex1, and Hyundai Rotem, along with shipbuilding stocks such as Hanwha Ocean and Samsung Heavy Industries, also increased.
Concerns that expectations regarding stablecoins are excessive, combined with delays in the passage of the cryptocurrency bill in the U.S. House of Representatives, led to a weak close for related stocks. Kakao Pay plunged as concerns over the overhang from the issuance of exchange bonds (EB) surfaced, and fintech stocks like Danal and NAVER also fell.
The KOSDAQ index recorded a gain of 6.04 points (0.74%), closing at 818.27. The index opened at 814.92, up 2.69 points (0.33%) from the previous day, showing slight losses before closing higher. On that day, individual and institutional investors made net purchases of 62.6 billion won and 3.1 billion won, respectively, while foreign investors were the only ones to net sell 71.4 billion won.
Among the top market capitalization stocks in the KOSDAQ, bio-related stocks such as Alteogen, HLB, PharmaResearch, and LigaChem Biosciences showed an upward trend. Alteogen is leading the KOSDAQ market, achieving new record highs continuously. Following the strong performance of Tesla in the New York stock market, secondary battery stocks like ECOPRO BM and Ecopro also closed higher.
Lee Kyung-min, a researcher at DAISHIN SECURITIES, noted, "The uncertainty in monetary policy expanded due to the overnight incident regarding the dismissal of Chairman Powell, leading to volatility in government bond yields and the dollar index, which affected early Asian markets. On that day, the sharp drop in SK hynix drove the decline in the KOSPI while Samsung Electronics helped to recover from hynix's weakness."
On that day, the weekly closing exchange rate of the Korean won against the U.S. dollar in the Seoul foreign exchange market was reported at 1392.6 won, up 6.9 won from the previous day (as of 3:30 p.m.). This is the highest level since May 19 (1397.8 won) based on the closing price.