Despite news that the United States seized an Iranian vessel, domestic stocks closed slightly higher on the 20th. It is seen as reflecting expectations that U.S. President Donald Trump will show what is called the "TACO (Trump Always Chickens Out)" approach.
The KOSPI ended at 6,219.09, up 27.17 points (0.44%) from the prior trading day. After opening higher at 6,213.92, the index turned lower early in the session on foreign selling but quickly reversed higher and looked to top the 6,300 level. However, it pared gains before the close to finish around 6,220.
By investor type, individuals and foreigners posted net sales of 277.5 billion won and 159.5 billion won, respectively, while institutions bought a net 181.3 billion won. Among institutions, brokerages bought a net 507.6 billion won and pension funds 131.1 billion won, while insurers and investment trusts sold a net 56.1 billion won and 55.7 billion won, respectively.
Concerns about a market decline grew as news broke that the United States seized an Iranian vessel. Earlier, on the 19th (local time), Trump said on the social media platform Truth Social that "an Iranian cargo ship named 'Tosca' tried to break our maritime blockade and it didn't go well," adding, "our Navy warship put a hole in the engine room to stop it."
Even so, stocks gained around 1% on the day, suggesting limited impact from Middle East risks. Lee Kyung-min, an analyst at Daishin Securities, said, "As similar noise repeats during the negotiation process, the market's sensitivity to Middle East risks is easing," adding, "with earnings and order momentum acting as upward pressure, the earnings-led market is resuming."
Major Asian markets also mostly rose. Hong Kong's Hang Seng index and China's Shanghai Composite each climbed in the 0.6% range, and Japan's Nikkei 225 also rose 0.6% to close.
By sector, semiconductor stocks were strong. SK hynix rose 3% ahead of its earnings release on the 23rd, while Jusung Engineering hit the daily upper limit. DB HiTek and others also surged more than 18% to close.
The KOSDAQ ended at 1,174.85, up 4.81 points (0.41%) from the prior trading day. The index opened lower at 1,167.1 but turned higher during the session on individual buying. Individuals and foreigners bought a net 162.4 billion won and 22.2 billion won, respectively, while institutions sold a net 165.1 billion won.
Among individual stocks, Voronoi jumped 11% to close after phase 1 clinical data for its "VRN11" targeted therapy for lung cancer beat market expectations. On the back of a new release using the "Silkroad Online" intellectual property and overseas success of "Night Crows," Wemade (19%) and Wemade Max (limit up) were strong.
Meanwhile, the won-dollar exchange rate closed at 1,477.2 won per U.S. dollar, down 6.3 won from the previous trading day.