The KOSPI index fell more than 3%, dropping below the 7,300 mark due to a massive sell-off by foreign investors. The KOSDAQ also declined by over 2%. This downturn is attributed to concerns over prolonged high interest rates in the U.S. and uncertainties in the semiconductor market, coupled with profit-taking following recent gains.
On May 19, the Korea Exchange reported that the KOSPI closed at 7,271.66, down 244.38 points (3.25%) from the previous trading day. The index opened at 7,425.66, down 90.38 points (1.20%), and fell further to a low of 7,141.91 during the session. Although it recovered some losses in the latter part of the trading day, it ultimately failed to maintain the 7,300 level.
In the securities market, individual investors purchased a net 5.63 trillion won worth of stocks, while foreign and institutional investors sold a net 6.26 trillion won and 527.7 billion won, respectively. Foreign investors have now sold off over 42 trillion won in stocks over nine consecutive trading days.
Most of the top market capitalization stocks experienced declines. Samsung Electronics fell by 1.96%, SK Hynix by 5.16%, SK Square by 6.68%, Hyundai Motor by 8.90%, LG Energy Solution by 1.96%, Samsung Electro-Mechanics by 4.27%, Doosan Enerbility by 5.44%, HD Hyundai Heavy Industries by 2.76%, and Samsung Life by 0.48%. In contrast, Hanwha Aerospace rose by 4.81%, benefiting from strong defense sector performance, making it the only stock among the top 10 to close higher.
Profit-taking was particularly concentrated among automotive and robotics-related stocks, such as Hyundai Motor and LG Electronics, which had surged recently due to momentum in robotics. Concerns over escalating labor disputes between Hyundai Motor and its labor union have also dampened investor sentiment across the group.
The KOSDAQ index closed at 1,084.36, down 26.73 points (2.41%) from the previous day. The index opened slightly higher at 1,111.36 but fell to a low of 1,063.28 as selling pressure from foreign and institutional investors increased.
In the KOSDAQ market, individual and foreign investors bought a net 1.03 billion won and 10 million won worth of stocks, while institutions sold a net 658 million won.
Among the top KOSDAQ stocks, Alteogen rose by 2.52%, but EcoPro BM fell by 4.20%, EcoPro by 4.10%, Rainbow Robotics by 10.72%, Kolon TissueGene by 1.66%, Samchundang Pharm by 2.14%, JUSUNG Engineering by 2.91%, Rino Technology by 4.85%, HLB by 1.59%, and ABL Bio by 0.18%, all closing lower.
Im Jeong-eun, a researcher at KB Securities, noted, "The U.S. stock market showed mixed signals, with concerns over sustained high interest rates and comments from Seagate's CEO regarding semiconductor supply constraints leading to a more than 2% drop in the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index. In the absence of significant market momentum ahead of the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) minutes and NVIDIA's earnings report, profit-taking continued to be a theme."
She added, "Foreign investors recorded a net sell-off of around 6.2 trillion won in the KOSPI market today, indicating a significant increase in recent market volatility. Moving forward, differentiated market trends are expected depending on the momentum from NVIDIA's AI semiconductor developments and the outcomes of key macro events."
Meanwhile, in the Seoul foreign exchange market, the weekly closing exchange rate for the won against the dollar was 1,507.8 won, up 7.5 won from the previous day.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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