The KOSPI on the 11th pierced through 7,700 and 7,800 points in succession and took aim at 8,000. Despite foreign selling pressure, individuals and pension funds net bought nearly 4 trillion won, strongly pulling the index higher.
However, concentration of buying in large-cap semiconductor stocks such as Samsung Electronics and SK hynix intensified, and concerns about market overheating from a short-term surge are growing. Although the index is setting a record high day after day, most stocks are falling, extending a distorted market in which a few names rally, prompting warnings about the steep uptrend.
On the day, the KOSPI rose 324.24 points, or 4.32%, from the previous trading day to close at 7,822.24. It opened at 7,775.31, up 227.31 points, or 3.70%, and broke through 7,800 within about 20 minutes. With the rapid index climb, a KOSPI buy-side sidecar was triggered around 9:30 a.m. The KOSPI extended gains intraday to as high as 7,899.32.
Individuals and institutions led the index rally. On the main board, individuals net bought 3,165.7 billion won, and institutions also net bought 755.1 billion won. Pension funds were net sellers, but funds flowed in through the financial investment account. Foreign investors alone net sold 3,904.2 billion won.
Typically, when share prices jump sharply in a short span, individuals' chase buying tends to slow. But on the day, retail investors continued to net buy despite the explosive index rally. Analysts said fear of missing out (FOMO) is strongly at play in the market beyond short-term theme chasing.
Lee Sang-yeon, a researcher at Shinyoung Securities, said, "The recent steady inflow of individual net buying into Samsung Electronics and SK hynix is notable for being less about simple dip buying and more about chasing the uptrend itself," adding, "As the desire not to be left out in a rising market grows, outstanding balances on bank overdraft accounts are also turning back to an uptrend."
Samsung Electronics and SK hynix, the No. 1 and No. 2 by market capitalization on the domestic stock market, showed high volatility of about 6% and 11%, respectively. The two corporations hit fresh peaks intraday, reaching the "290,000-electronics" and "1.9 million-nix" milestones.
This is seen as reflecting last week's U.S. market closing higher led by tech stocks. Semiconductor-related tech names such as Intel, Micron and SanDisk rose more than 10%, and both the Standard & Poor's (S&P) 500 and the Nasdaq composite set record highs. Nvidia's earnings announcement scheduled for the 20th is also expected to influence the direction of semiconductor stocks.
The researcher said, "Given how fast domestic and overseas tech stocks have risen recently, it is necessary to keep in mind the possibility of a short-term correction as profit-taking emerges," noting, "The recent decline in the advance-decline ratio (ADR—number of rising stocks/number of falling stocks) for the KOSPI and S&P 500 together also suggests that concentration in a small group of leaders is intensifying."
Elsewhere, Samsung C&T rose more than 6% on gains in the value of its Samsung Electronics equity stake and expectations for nuclear power orders, and Hyundai AutoEver hit an intraday record high on anticipation of a listing for Hyundai Motor Group's U.S. Robotics subsidiary, Boston Dynamics.
By contrast, domestic airline and transport stocks weakened together as international oil prices rose amid stalled U.S.-Iran cease-fire talks. On the main board, Jeju Air, Jin Air and Korean Air Lines fell around 4%. STX Green Logis (5.50%) and Dongyang Express (3.73%) also declined.
On the main board, 147 stocks rose, but 738 fell, making the tilt toward a few large caps stand out.
Meanwhile, the KOSDAQ edged lower. The KOSDAQ fell 0.38 points, or 0.03%, from the previous trading day to finish at 1,207.34.
Buying also flowed into select robotics stocks, including Cosmo Robotics, which debuted on the KOSDAQ and achieved a "ttattab" (four times the offer price), ROBOTIS (12.86%) and Rainbow Robotics (10.33%). However, among top market-cap names, EcoPro BM, EcoPro, Alteogen and HLB ended lower, leaving the market mixed.
On the KOSDAQ, both individuals and foreigners were net buyers at 148.1 billion won and 55.0 billion won, respectively, while institutions net sold 172.0 billion won.