KOSPI Falls Sharply Again After Two Days of Rebound, Dragged Down by Foreign and Institutional Selling

The Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) fell sharply again after two days of rebound, dropping as much as 4.76% during the session and falling below the 5500-point mark.

The decline was mainly influenced by rising U.S. Treasury yields and the weak performance of data center company Elice on its first day of trading. The company's IPO was priced at 90,500 won, raising about 201 billion won, but it fell as much as 32% on its first day, negatively impacting market sentiment.

Foreign investors net sold 636.7 billion won in the Korean securities market, while institutional investors net sold 467 billion won, including a net sale of 241.8 billion won by financial investment institutions and 159 billion won by pension funds.

Individual investors net bought 838.8 billion won, and other legal entities net bought 261.6 billion won, attempting to hedge against selling pressure, but failed to prevent the index from declining, with almost all sectors experiencing a drop, including battery manufacturers that previously led the rebound.

Huh Jae-Hwan, an analyst at Eugene Investment & Securities, noted that this sell-off exhibited indiscriminate characteristics, with almost all stocks declining, indicating a very weak market. Major semiconductor stocks like SK Hynix and Samsung Electronics were significant drags.

Foreign capital and institutions reduced their risk assets in an environment of rising Treasury yields, with funds flowing from the Korean stock market to higher-yielding fixed income or safe-haven assets. Individuals and some legal entities took on these positions, but supply pressure still dominated prices; beneficiaries were low-beta or stable cash flow sectors, while high-valuation chip and AI-related stocks faced pressure.

Source: Public Information