The KOSPI reversed from morning gains to trade at 6,603.61 as of 11:06 AM, down 87.01 points (1.30%) from the previous session, as foreign investors sold 1.5848 trillion won worth of shares while retail investors bought 1.4678 trillion won. The intraday decline followed the Shanghai listing of Chinese semiconductor firm CXMT, which pressured Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix to reverse earlier gains. The reversal occurred against the backdrop of a 4.3% drop in the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index during the previous US trading session, with major chip stocks including Intel (-7.9%) and Micron (-7.0%) posting losses.
KOSPI Opens Higher Then Reverses to 6,600 Level
The KOSPI opened 115.65 points (1.73%) higher at 6,806.27 before fluctuating around the flat line and then turning negative. The index fell as low as 6,557.39 (-1.99%) during intraday trading.
Foreign Investors Sell 1.58 Trillion Won as Retail Buyers Counter
Foreign investors sold a net 1.5848 trillion won in the securities market, pulling the index lower. Retail investors and institutional investors bought a net 1.4678 trillion won and 73.2 billion won respectively. Foreign investors also showed a selling bias of 30.1 billion won in the KOSPI 200 futures market.
Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix Decline After CXMT Shanghai Listing
Samsung Electronics (-1.00%) and SK Hynix (-1.36%) traded at the 240,000 won and 1.73 million won levels respectively. Both stocks opened with gains of around 3% but reversed to losses during the session. CXMT raised 57.92 billion yuan (approximately 12.5 trillion won) through its IPO by issuing 6.688 billion new shares at a public offering price of 8.66 yuan. This represents the largest IPO in Asian markets this year and the largest among Chinese semiconductor companies to date.
Seo Sang-young, managing director at Mirae Asset Securities, stated in a phone call with Yonhap News that "악재와 호재가 혼재됐다" (negative and positive factors were mixed) as Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix signed large-scale contracts over the weekend while US-Iran military conflict remained limited, contrasting with the sharp decline in the US semiconductor sector on Friday.
US Semiconductor Stocks Post Losses in Prior Session
The Nasdaq Composite Index fell 0.64% from the previous session due to semiconductor selling pressure in the New York stock market. Intel dropped 7.9% despite announcing second-quarter results that exceeded market expectations, due to doubts about securing future foundry customers. Other semiconductor stocks also declined: Broadcom (-2.7%), AMD (-3.3%), and Micron (-7.0%). The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index fell 4.3%. SK Hynix's American Depositary Receipt (ADR) plunged 8.8%.
Kim Jae-seung, researcher at Hyundai Motor Securities, analyzed that "investors' doubts are growing about whether big tech companies' excessive CapEx (capital expenditure) can continue as they compete in artificial intelligence (AI) investment despite worsening cash flow."
The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) pointed out on local time that the price of SK Hynix's ADR is trading at a significantly large premium compared to the common stock listed in Korea, warning this as "another signal of AI trading overheating." Senior market columnist James Mackintosh stated in a column that "the tremendous premium formed in ADR compared to SK Hynix's Korean-listed stock is something that shouldn't happen in the market."
The San Francisco AI Summit resulted in announcements of large-scale investment and supply chain cooperation between Korean companies including Samsung, SK, Hyundai Motor Group, and Naver, and global AI companies including Nvidia, OpenAI, Broadcom, and Anthropic, totaling $950 billion (approximately 1,390 trillion won).
KOSDAQ Maintains 1% Gains
The KOSDAQ index stood at 761.45, up 13.23 points (1.77%) at the same time. The index opened 12.32 points (1.65%) higher at 760.54 and continued its upward trend. It rose as high as 780.39 (4.30%) in early trading but has since reduced its gains somewhat.
In the KOSDAQ market, institutional investors showed a buying bias of 168.4 billion won. Retail and foreign investors showed net selling of 139.8 billion won and 24 billion won respectively.
Most of the top market capitalization stocks in the KOSDAQ market are rising: Alteogen (4.83%), Ecopro (1.41%), Ecopro BM (0.65%), Rainbow Robotics (6.81%), and Jusung Engineering (3.69%). Some stocks are weak: PSK (-0.90%), Simpac (-0.45%), and Phadu (-0.78%).
By sector, entertainment and culture (4.78%), IT services (4.52%), and food and tobacco (2.00%) showed the largest gains. Transportation equipment and parts (-3.77%), construction (-3.56%), and metals (-2.98%) sectors declined.
FAQ
What caused the KOSPI to reverse from gains to losses during trading?
The KOSPI reversed to losses as foreign investors sold 1.5848 trillion won worth of shares, with additional pressure from the Shanghai listing of Chinese semiconductor firm CXMT, which raised concerns about increased competition for Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix in the memory chip market.
How did Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix perform during the trading session?
Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix both opened with gains of around 3% but reversed to losses during the session, trading down 1.00% at the 240,000 won level and down 1.36% at the 1.73 million won level respectively as of 11:06 AM.
