KOSPI Falls 1% Amid Institutional Selling Despite Strong Samsung Earnings

By Kwon,sung jin Posted : October 12, 2026, 12:44 Updated : October 12, 2026, 12:44
Samsung Electronics reported earnings that surpassed market expectations, yet the KOSPI index is declining. Analysts attribute this to increased selling pressure from foreign and institutional investors.

As of 12:30 p.m. on October 8, the KOSPI was down 81.05 points (1.18%) at 6,723.82.

The index opened at 6,807.64, up 1.26 points from the previous close, but quickly turned downward, eventually dropping to the low 6,700s.

Market attention was focused on Samsung's third-quarter earnings, which showed a revenue of 195 trillion won, a 126.6% increase from the same period last year. Operating profit reached 107.4 trillion won, up 782.5% year-on-year.

These figures surpassed the previous quarter's record of 171.5 trillion won in revenue and 89.5 trillion won in operating profit. The operating profit also slightly exceeded the consensus estimate of 106 trillion won compiled by financial information provider FnGuide.

Despite the strong earnings report, Samsung's stock is moving in the opposite direction. It showed a gain of over 1% in pre-market trading but is currently down 1.12%. The stock is among the top sold by institutions, which have sold a net 317.5 billion won worth of Samsung shares.

In the broader market, foreign and institutional investors have sold a net 1.09 trillion won and 1.2787 trillion won, respectively. In contrast, individual investors are net buyers, purchasing 1.9803 trillion won worth of stocks.

Most large-cap stocks are also experiencing declines. SK Square is down 6.83%, Samsung Electro-Mechanics is down 2.24%, Hyundai Motor is down 3.13%, and KB Financial is down 2.26%. Among the top 10 market cap stocks, only LG Energy Solution is up by 3.96%.

At the same time, the KOSDAQ index has fallen by 7.82 points (0.87%) to 890.57. Stocks like Alteogen (-6.03%), EcoPro (-0.65%), and Rainbow Robotics (-3.47%) are down, while JUSUNG Engineering (10.30%), Rino Industry (4.11%), and Wonik IPS (4.58%) are up.

Overnight, U.S. markets closed lower. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell by 341.41 points (0.66%) to finish at 51,179.87. The S&P 500 dropped 17.16 points (0.22%) to close at 7,801.77, and the Nasdaq Composite fell by 61.20 points (0.22%) to end at 27,538.69.

Han Ji-young, a researcher at Kiwoom Securities, stated, "Today, despite the stabilization of the surge in U.S. 10-year Treasury yields and a reduction in the decline of U.S. stocks, the market is likely to experience volatility as it digests Samsung's preliminary earnings report, along with supply and demand issues related to the holiday and options expiration dates."

She added, "Since this is a preliminary report, the lack of detailed figures may lead to temporary discrepancies in market interpretations regarding exchange rate impacts and performance by business segment. It is also important to consider short-term supply and demand issues arising from the market closure on Friday and ETF rebalancing on the 8th and 12th, as well as options expiration on the 8th."




* This article has been translated by AI.

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