▲ The KOSPI is displayed on the trading board at a Hana Bank dealing room in Jung-gu, Seoul, on July 20. On this day, the KOSPI closed at 6,516.27, down 304.33 points (4.46%) from the previous trading session, while the KOSDAQ index closed at 749.64, down 42.20 points (5.33%).
The KOSPI barely held onto the 6,500 level on July 20, plunging more than 4% due to persistent weakness in investor sentiment toward semiconductors and escalating tensions in the Middle East.
According to the Korea Exchange, the KOSPI closed at 6,516.27 today (July 20), down 304.33 points (4.46%).
The index opened at 6,643.58, down 177.02 points (2.60%) from the previous session. While it briefly narrowed its losses to reach 6,814.86 during the morning, it soon widened its decline.
At one point, it fell to 6,472.80, dipping below the 6,500 mark.
Consequently, a sell-side sidecar was triggered in the KOSPI market at approximately 11:21:26 a.m.
This marks the 38th time a sidecar has been triggered in the KOSPI market this year, with 20 of those instances being sell-side sidecars.
The index faced downward pressure due to selling by institutional investors.
In the KOSPI market, foreign and individual investors net bought 523.5 billion won and 351 billion won worth of stocks, respectively, but institutions net sold 921.7 billion won.
Foreign investors also showed a net buying position of 351 billion won in the KOSPI 200 futures market.
The won-dollar exchange rate stood at 1,478.4 won as of 3:30 p.m. in the Seoul foreign exchange market, down 0.1 won.
The KOSPI fell as investor sentiment failed to recover amid ongoing concerns about a peak-out in semiconductor stocks.
This was triggered by reports that the latest AI model "Kimi K3," released for free by Chinese AI startup Moonshot AI, demonstrated powerful performance, raising doubts about the justification for the massive capital expenditures by hyperscalers that have been investing heavily in the sector.
Semiconductor stock prices were also affected by Japan's Kioxia losing a patent infringement lawsuit in the United States last week, which resulted in an order to pay 229 million dollars (approximately 340 billion won) in damages, causing its stock price to drop significantly.
In the aftermath, the "semiconductor duo" that accounts for a large portion of the KOSPI, Samsung Electronics (-4.31%) and SK Hynix (-4.23%), fell sharply, leaving the index unable to gain momentum.
The two stocks account for 50.33% of the KOSPI's total market capitalization as of the closing price.
On this day, foreign investors net bought 612 billion won of SK Hynix and 275 billion won of Samsung Electronics.
They were the first and second most net-bought stocks, respectively.
Furthermore, as military clashes between the U.S. and Iran intensified, reports that three U.S. soldiers were killed last week heightened fears of an all-out war between the two countries, adding further burden to the market.
As a result, international oil prices surged, reigniting concerns over inflation.
Lee Kyung-min, a researcher at Daishin Securities, stated, "The domestic stock market opened lower today as it reflected external negative factors that had accumulated during the holiday period all at once."
However, he noted, "Positive views that the memory market's solid demand and supplier-dominant structure will continue remain valid. As bargain hunting and profit-taking intersected, foreign, institutional, and individual investors failed to form a clear direction in supply and demand, leading to increased volatility."
There were no gainers among the top 30 stocks by market capitalization in the KOSPI on this day.
Following Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix, SK Square (-2.89%), Samsung Electro-Mechanics (-0.16%), and Hyundai Motor (-6.12%) also declined.
In particular, Hyundai Motor's closing price fell below the 400,000 won mark to 399,000 won.
By sector, only real estate (0.84%) rose, while most sectors, including insurance (-8.98%), machinery and equipment (-7.22%), and retail (-6.27%), declined.
In the KOSPI market, 97 stocks rose, while 799 fell.
18 stocks remained unchanged.
The KOSDAQ index also closed at 749.64, down 42.20 points (5.33%) from the previous session.
The index opened at 773.21, down 18.63 points (2.35%) from the previous trading day, and also widened its decline, leading to a sell-side sidecar being triggered in the KOSDAQ market at approximately 10:52:54 a.m.
This is the 23rd time a sidecar has been triggered in the KOSDAQ market this year, including today, with 10 of those being sell-side sidecars.
The KOSDAQ index plunged to 747.00 during the session, marking its lowest level in the past year.
Among top market cap stocks, Alteogen (-2.53%), EcoPro BM (-7.38%), EcoPro (-8.13%), and Jusung Engineering (-10.64%) declined.
However, Samchundang Pharm (29.82%) surged near the daily limit after it was reported that the company received an official response from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regarding pre-consultation (Pre-ANDA) for the development of an oral semaglutide generic.
In the KOSDAQ market, 198 stocks rose, 1,487 fell, and 54 remained unchanged.
Trading values for the KOSPI and KOSDAQ markets were recorded at 29.649 trillion won and 4.806 trillion won, respectively.
The total trading value for the pre-market and main market of the alternative trading system, NexTrade, was 13.1349 trillion won.
(Photo: Yonhap News)
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