As international oil prices surged again, the domestic stock market fell. U.S. President Donald Trump recently hinted at a "end of war" possibility, but war clouds gathered as Iran's new supreme leader issued hard-line remarks.
With the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz extending into the 14th day, international oil prices again soared to $100 per barrel. In the domestic stock market, foreigners and institutions turned to "sell," and as individual investors maintained buying, the KOSPI barely held the 5,400 level.
On the 13th, the KOSPI closed at 5,487.24, down 1.72% (96.01 points) from the previous day. The KOSPI opened at 5,412.39, down 170.86 points (3.06%), but the intraday decline narrowed.
Overnight, the three major U.S. stock indexes closed lower. The move came after Mojtaba Khamenei, elected as Iran's new supreme leader, said in his first official statement that "we must continue to use the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz as a lever for exerting pressure on the enemy."
Concerns grew that the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz would continue, and international oil prices again topped $100 per barrel. May Brent futures settled at $100.46 per barrel, jumping 9.2% from the previous session, and April West Texas Intermediate (WTI) futures settled at $95.73 per barrel, up 9.7%.
Investor sentiment weakened in the domestic stock market. However, as individual investors steadily net bought, the index's losses gradually narrowed. On the Korea Exchange, foreigners and institutions sold about 1.47 trillion won and 930 billion won, respectively, while individuals alone bought more than 2.4 trillion won.
Lee Kyung-min, a Daishin Securities researcher, said, "The market's sensitivity to the fallout from the war is continuing to decline," adding, "Negative issues are scattered, but the volatility triggered by geopolitical issues is gradually easing."
Most of the top market-cap stocks on the main board were weak. Samsung Electronics and SK hynix fell more than 2% at the close. Energy and defense stocks were also weak. LIG Nex1, Hanwha Systems, S-Oil and SK Innovation also ended lower.
By contrast, nuclear power stocks rose after the "Special Act on Korea-U.S. Strategic Investment," which contains follow-up measures to the Korea-U.S. trade talks, passed the National Assembly's plenary session. Daewoo Engineering & Construction jumped more than 17%, while Doosan Enerbility, Hyundai Engineering & Construction and KEPCO E&C closed higher.
Game stocks were also strong. Krafton, which released that it would form a physical artificial intelligence (AI) strategic alliance with Hanwha Aerospace, and NCSOFT, which set a goal of "5 trillion won in sales by 2030," gained.
The KOSDAQ was stronger than the KOSPI on the day. The KOSDAQ closed at 1,152.96, up 0.40% (4.56 points) from the previous day.
Institutions led the KOSDAQ market. While individuals and foreigners net sold 131.6 billion won and 108.2 billion won, respectively, institutions alone bought 275.7 billion won. In particular, among institutions, securities firms, where flows from individuals' exchange-traded funds (ETFs) show up, were net buyers of 135.8 billion won.
The researcher said, "For the KOSPI, weakening risk appetite centered on large caps is clear, but the KOSDAQ instead rose," adding, "In recent ups and downs, the KOSDAQ's outperformance versus the KOSPI is evident."