The Korea-U.S. tariff negotiations were concluded, eliminating market uncertainty, but the KOSPI index closed slightly lower. This marks the first decline for the KOSPI index in 7 transactions.
On that day, the KOSPI index closed at 3245.44, down 9.03 points (0.28%) from the previous transaction. The index opened at 3275.78, up 21.31 points (0.65%) from the previous session, and rose to 3288.26, setting a new record high. However, it reversed to decline due to profit-taking.
The market was driven by individuals and foreigners. Individuals and foreigners purchased 223.7 billion won and 344.9 billion won, respectively, while institutions sold a net 705.4 billion won.
By sector, the results of the Korea-U.S. tariff negotiations caused mixed reactions. The shipbuilding stocks, which were expected to benefit, rose significantly. Hanwha Ocean increased by 13%, while HD Hyundai Heavy Industries, HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering, and Samsung Heavy Industries showed strength.
According to the trade negotiations, the tariff imposed on the U.S. from the 1st of next month has been reduced from 25% to 15%. The government has also decided to establish a $350 billion investment fund for the U.S., with $150 billion dedicated solely to shipbuilding cooperation.
Hyundai Motor Securities noted, "The U.S. has no viable alternatives to reinvigorate the domestic shipbuilding industry aside from Korea, so the impact of reciprocal tariffs is limited," adding, "The Korea-U.S. shipbuilding cooperation is expected to accelerate further with a large-scale investment of $150 billion announced in the trade negotiations."
In contrast, the automotive sector saw concentrated selling pressure. Hyundai Motor closed down in the 4% range, while Kia ended down in the 7% range.
Jae-Won Lee, a researcher at Shinhan Investment Corp., remarked, "The automotive item tariffs seem to have disappointed investors as they failed to reach levels comparable to those of Japan or the European Union (EU)," noting that Japan and the EU impose tariffs of 12.5% on automotive products, while Korea will impose a tariff of 15%.
Hanwha Aerospace, which announced results exceeding market expectations, closed nearly 2% higher from the previous transaction. On that day, Hanwha Aerospace announced its preliminary second-quarter results, reporting an operating profit of 864.4 billion won. This is the largest operating profit in history, and at one point during the session, it became a coveted stock (one share trading above 1 million won).
The KOSDAQ index closed at 805.24, down 1.57 points (0.20%) from the previous day. The KOSDAQ index was also defended as individuals and foreigners bought stocks. Individuals purchased a net 9.7 billion won, while foreigners purchased a net 27.7 billion won, and institutions sold a net 2.82 billion won.
The KOSDAQ market capitalization top stocks closed mixed. Alteogen, Peptron, and PharmaResearch rose, while Ecopro, ECOPRO BM, Rainbow Robotics, LigaChem Biosciences, and Sam Chun Dang Pharm closed lower.
Jae-Won Lee, a researcher at Shinhan Investment Corp., analyzed that "both bio and major secondary battery stocks are underperforming, while there appears to be a rotation among theme stocks such as entertainment and North Korea-related stocks."
Meanwhile, in the Seoul foreign exchange market, the won-dollar exchange rate closed at 1387 won, up 3.9 won from the previous transaction's closing price of 1383.1 won.