Unprecedented Levels of Fear: Investors Gripped by Anxiety

The KOSPI 200 Volatility Index, often referred to as the Korean fear index, soared to its highest level ever during intraday trading today (June 29).

The surge is attributed to rapidly escalating market anxiety, driven by renewed tensions between the United States and Iran, as well as dampened investor sentiment toward semiconductor stocks.

As of 10:00 a.m. today, the KOSPI 200 Volatility Index (VKOSPI) stood at 97.40, up 5.06% from the previous trading day.

Earlier in the session, the index climbed as high as 97.99, marking a sharp 5.70% increase.

This figure significantly surpasses the 83.58 recorded on March 5 of this year, immediately following the outbreak of the war involving Iran, and represents the highest level since the Korea Exchange began officially publishing the VKOSPI in April 2009.

Including data from before the index was officially published, the record high remains 103.05, reached during intraday trading on October 29, 2008, at the height of the global financial crisis.

Market analysts point to a concentration of capital in leveraged ETFs tracking individual stocks like Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix, combined with the U.S.-Iran conflict that resurfaced over the weekend, as key factors weighing on investor sentiment.

Reports of retaliatory airstrikes and counterattacks between the U.S. and Iran over the weekend, coupled with news of Apple raising its product prices, are further fueling market instability.

Concerns that major AI data center operators like Apple might reduce investment due to the burden of rising memory prices are also being cited as a factor worsening sentiment in the semiconductor sector.

Analysts suggest that as concerns grow over Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix, which hold significant weight in the domestic stock market's total market capitalization, overall market volatility is expanding in tandem.

The VKOSPI is calculated based on option prices; when investors buy more options to hedge against sharp fluctuations in stock prices, option prices rise.

A higher VKOSPI indicates that the market is anticipating significant volatility ahead.

Reported by Kim Minjeong | Video by Lee Ui-seon | Graphics by Lee Jeong-ju | Produced by SBS Digital News
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.