Kospi Opens Lower Amid Escalating Middle East Tensions, Briefly Turns Upward During Intraday Trading

The Kospi, which opened lower, is attempting a rebound during the early trading session today (the 26th).

According to the Korea Exchange, as of 9:24 AM, the Kospi index stood at 5,545.18, down 5.12 points (0.09%) from the previous session.

After starting 51.25 points (0.92%) lower than the previous close at 5,499.05, the index has been narrowing its losses and even briefly turned upward during intraday trading.

In the main bourse, foreign investors and institutions recorded net sales of 27.9 billion won and 5.4 billion won, respectively, while individual investors posted a net purchase of 24.4 billion won.

Foreign investors are net buyers of Kospi 200 futures, amounting to 19.8 billion won.

The weak market opening is seen as the impact of soaring international oil prices driven by heightened tensions in the Middle East over the weekend.

Concerns over a reignition of tensions between the U.S. and Israel grew as reports surfaced that they are reviewing the resumption of airstrikes against Iran.

Consequently, Brent crude for delivery in India rose 3.1% on the 23rd (local time) to reach $116.72 per barrel, hitting its highest level since late April.

West Texas Intermediate (WTI) also rose to $103.27.

On Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 1.23%, while the S&P 500 index and the Nasdaq Composite index declined 0.52% and 0.21%, respectively.

However, tech stock sell-offs triggered by concerns over AI overinvestment have somewhat subsided, creating an atmosphere that allows the domestic stock market to attempt a rebound.

Micron (2.5%), AMD (1.7%), and Intel (1.72%) rose, while Nvidia (-0.59%), Broadcom (-0.48%), and SanDisk (-1.82%) narrowed their losses compared to the previous trading session.

Amid these conditions, Samsung Electronics is trading 0.93% lower, whereas SK Hynix started flat and expanded its gains to trade 1.41% higher.

SK Square is also up 0.65%, which appears to be influenced by reports that SK Hynix announced the suspension of its review for the listing of its subsidiary Solidigm, alongside reports that it is pursuing a special dividend utilizing capital gains from the sale of Kioxia.

At the same time, the Kosdaq index stood at 745.63, down 6.06 points (0.81%) from the previous session, after starting down 9.52 points (1.27%) at 742.17 and partially narrowing its losses.

In the Kosdaq market, foreign investors and institutions are net sellers of 13.6 billion won and 10.4 billion won, respectively, while individual investors are net buyers of 24.4 billion won.

(Photo: Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.