SEOUL, Oct. 2 (AJP) — The Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) crawled toward 7,000 on Friday despite collective selling by foreign, institutional and retail investors. The market's floor now rests on corporate buying that Samsung Electronics has nearly finished.
The main index in Seoul rose 11.7 points, or 0.2 percent, to 6,983.0.
Foreign investors net sold 216.1 billion won ($159.0 million), putting them on course for a sixth straight session of selling. Samsung Electronics has already bought more shares than it planned under its 15 trillion won ($11.0 billion) repurchase, and investors are watching who absorbs the selling once that bid is gone.
The main index in Seoul swung between 6,927.9 and 6,995.2, a day after a 1.9 percent rally led by chipmakers.
Individuals sold a net 424.0 billion won ($312.0 million) and institutions 51.5 billion won ($37.9 million).
With all three main groups selling, the net buying fell to the category the Korea Exchange labels other corporations, which is where company share repurchases are booked.
Samsung had acquired 53.8 million shares through Thursday, topping the 53.29 million it set out to buy, for a total of 14.2 trillion won ($10.4 billion), according to exchange filings reported by local media.
The program is capped by value rather than share count, leaving about 840 billion won ($618 million) under the ceiling. Samsung has said the shares are for employee stock compensation.
SK hynix's separate 40 trillion won ($29.4 billion) buyback was close to three-quarters complete at the end of September, and local media expect it to wrap up around mid-October.
Corporate buying had been soaking up heavy foreign selling. Foreigners sold a net 21.5 trillion won ($15.8 billion) of KOSPI shares in September, a fifth straight monthly outflow, with Samsung Electronics and SK hynix accounting for about three-quarters of it, according to the Seoul Economic Daily.
Samsung Electronics gained 0.2 percent to 276,500 won ($203.49). SK hynix rose 0.4 percent to 1,840,000 won ($1,354.14).
Chip equipment maker Hanmi Semiconductor climbed 1.9 percent to 273,500 won ($201.28).
Samsung Biologics fell 3.4 percent to 1,369,500 won ($1,007.87). It was the steepest drop among the 10 largest KOSPI stocks by market capitalization.
Traders are also bracing for U.S. September jobs data, with the 10-year Treasury yield at 5.26 percent, and for Samsung Electronics' preliminary third-quarter results, expected on October 8.
The tech-heavy KOSDAQ slipped 0.9 points, or 0.1 percent, to 893.4, holding nearly all of Thursday's 4.5 percent surge after briefly pushing toward 900.
The Nikkei 225 in Tokyo fell 630.0 points, or 0.9 percent, to 68,326.7.
The won traded at 1,358.8 per dollar, 0.7 won stronger than the previous session.
AJP Takeaways
- Foreign, institutional and retail investors were all net sellers on the KOSPI, which held just below 7,000.
- Samsung Electronics' buyback has passed its planned share count, and SK hynix's is expected to finish around mid-October. Those buybacks were the corporate buying that had absorbed foreign selling.
- Traders are watching U.S. jobs data and Samsung Electronics' third-quarter results, expected on October 8.
Tags: KOSPI, KOSDAQ, Samsung Electronics, SK hynix, Samsung Biologics, Hanmi Semiconductor, Korea Exchange, Nikkei 225, U.S. Treasury yield, share buyback
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