After surging 8% the previous day to reclaim 8,000 points, the KOSPI opened down more than 2% early on the 10th as profit-taking poured in. With U.S. semiconductor stocks weakening overnight and Middle East geopolitical risks resurfacing, Korea's stock market is expected to show high volatility.
On the 10th, the KOSPI index opened at 7,899.77, down 197.16 points (2.43%) from the previous trading day. As of 9:05 a.m. that day, individuals net bought more than 113.0 billion won, supporting the lower end of the index. Foreign investors were net selling nearly 150.0 billion won.
Both Samsung Electronics and SK hynix, the bellwethers of Korea's stock market, were down more than 2%. Among the top market-cap stocks on the main board, Samsung Electro-Mechanics and SK Square were falling, while Hyundai Motor and LG Energy Solution were gaining.
The three major U.S. stock indexes ended mixed with weakness centered on tech. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.17% from the previous session, but the Standard & Poor's (S&P) 500 and the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite fell 0.26% and 0.97%, respectively. The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index plunged as much as 8.62% intraday.
News that large-scale data center developer Crusoe temporarily halted a massive data center project in Wyoming weighed broadly on semiconductor and artificial intelligence (AI) shares. Profit-taking also appeared ahead of SpaceX's initial public offering (IPO) scheduled for the 12th, which seemed to have an impact.
The Middle East war issue also resurfaced. Investor sentiment weakened after U.S. President Donald Trump alleged that Iran shot down a U.S. helicopter and hinted at a hardline response. After the close, the U.S. military said it carried out airstrikes on targets inside Iran.
Korea's stock market is expected to show high volatility due to short-term profit-taking following the previous day's 8% surge and caution ahead of the U.S. consumer price index (CPI) for May.
Han Ji-young, a Kiwoom Securities researcher, said, "Even with the news that West Texas Intermediate (WTI) fell below $90 on hopes for U.S.-Iran talks and the intraday narrowing of losses in the U.S. market, Korea's market is expected to face a mix of upside and downside factors, including short-term profit-taking after the previous day's 8% surge and caution ahead of the May CPI."
Han added, "The market will focus on the U.S. May CPI due tonight," noting, "The trigger for the recent market correction was concern about the Federal Reserve's rate hikes, and this inflation print could revise bets on the Fed's policy path."
The KOSDAQ index opened at 958.58, down 9.23 points (0.95%) from the previous trading day, but soon turned slightly higher and was firm in positive territory.
Top market-cap stocks were mixed. Alteogen was down more than 1%, while EcoPro, EcoPro BM and Jusung Engineering were rising.