On May 18, the KOSPI index initially plunged more than 4% but managed to recover, closing slightly higher at 7510, bolstered by a rebound in semiconductor stocks.
According to the Korea Exchange, the KOSPI finished up 22.86 points (0.31%) at 7516.04. The index opened at 7443.29, down 49.89 points (0.67%) from the previous session.
During the early trading session, the KOSPI experienced a sharp drop of over 4%, triggering a sell-side circuit breaker around 9:19 a.m.
The sell-side circuit breaker is activated when KOSPI 200 futures fall more than 5% compared to the previous trading day and remain at that level for one minute. This measure temporarily halts program trading for five minutes to ease market overheating.
Lee Kyung-min, a researcher at Daishin Securities, noted, "The KOSPI fell to the 7140 level after the sell-side circuit breaker was triggered, but it turned bullish thanks to a rebound in Samsung Electronics. The semiconductor sector saw a surge in bargain buying, while other sectors generally remained weak."
In the main stock market, individuals and institutions recorded net purchases of 22.087 billion won and 13.912 billion won, respectively, while foreign investors sold a net 36.492 billion won.
Among the top market-cap stocks, Samsung Electronics rose by 3.88%, SK Hynix by 1.15%, Samsung Electro-Mechanics by 2.08%, and Doosan Enerbility by 1.17%. In contrast, SK Square fell by 0.46%, Hyundai Motor by 5.29%, and LG Energy Solution by 2.16%.
The KOSDAQ index closed down 18.73 points (1.66%) at 1111.09, starting the day at 1122.57, down 7.25 points (0.64%) from the previous session.
In the KOSDAQ market, foreign investors purchased a net 2.372 billion won, while individuals and institutions sold 750 million won and 2.55 billion won, respectively.
Among the top stocks by market capitalization, Alteogen fell by 3.12%, EcoPro BM by 0.05%, EcoPro by 1.86%, Rainbow Robotics by 7.90%, Kolon TissueGene by 2.87%, and Samchundang Pharm by 3.74%. In contrast, JW Engineering surged by 29.96%.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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