On the 27th, the KOSPI index opened lower as investor sentiment chilled after U.S. President Donald Trump mentioned restoring the tariff. The previous day, Trump said, "The National Assembly of Korea has not carried out the legal procedures necessary to implement the trade agreement between the United States and Korea," adding that he would raise tariffs on Korean products back to the level before the trade agreement transfer.
As of 9:06 a.m. that day, the KOSPI index was at 4,905.62, down 43.97 points (0.89%) from the previous session. The KOSPI index opened at 4,932.89, down 0.34% from the previous session.
In the main board, foreigners and institutions were net sellers of 334.4 billion won and 89 billion won, respectively. Only retail investors bought 433.3 billion won worth of shares.
Most large-cap stocks are weak. Kia and Hyundai Motor are down 4.06% and 2.94%, respectively, and Samsung Electronics (-1.25%), LG Energy Solution (-1.20%), HD Hyundai Heavy Industries (-0.66%), and Samsung Biologics (-0.11%) are also falling. In contrast, Doosan Enerbility (4.03%), SK Square (2.04%), Hanwha Aerospace (0.87%), and SK hynix (0.75%) are rising.
At the same time, the KOSDAQ index was at 1,079.24, up 14.83 points (1.39%) from the previous session. The KOSDAQ index started at 1,054.19, down 0.96% from the previous session, then immediately turned higher. In the KOSDAQ market, institutions were net buyers of 216.0 billion won, while retail investors and foreigners were net sellers of 161.7 billion won and 43.3 billion won, respectively.
Most top KOSDAQ market-cap stocks are strong. Peptron rose 5%, and Kolon TissueGene (3.62%), LigaChem Biosciences (2.80%), HLB (2.69%), Alteogen (1.72%), ABL Bio (0.83%), and Sam Chun Dang Pharm (0.13%) are also gaining. In contrast, Rainbow Robotics (-2.50%) and EcoPro (-1.38%) are weak.
In the Seoul foreign exchange market that day, the won-dollar exchange rate opened at 1,450 won per $1, up 9.4 won from the previous session.
Meanwhile, on the 26th (local time), the New York stock market rose as expectations grew for big tech corporations' earnings despite concerns over a U.S. federal government shutdown.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended at 49,412.40, up 0.64% from the previous session. The Standard & Poor's (S&P) 500 rose 0.50% to 6,950.23, and the Nasdaq gained 0.43% to 23,601.36.