The KOSPI hovered around the flat line during trading on the 26th.

As of 10:59 a.m. today, the KOSPI stood at 6,759.33, up 16.59 points (0.25%) from the previous day.

The index started slightly lower at 6,727.25, down 15.49 points (0.23%) from the previous close, before turning upward.

It temporarily climbed as high as 6,829.88 (+1.29%) during the session, but subsequently pared gains to fluctuate.

Foreign investors extended their net selling in the main bourse for a fourth consecutive trading day.

Foreigners are currently net sellers at 1.0262 trillion won.

In contrast, retail investors marked a buying dominance for the third straight day until today, currently being net buyers of 677.2 billion won.

Institutions also showed a buying dominance of 263.1 billion won.

On Wall Street overnight, semiconductor shares rebounded and the three major stock indices rose side by side.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite index rose 0.66% from the previous session, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 index gained 0.30% and 0.32%, respectively.

Nvidia rose 2.19% a day ahead of its earnings announcement, and among major semiconductor stocks, AMD (4.91%), Micron (2.48%), and Intel (0.25%) showed strong momentum.

The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index rebounded by 1.44%.

Treasury yields, which recently emerged as a burden factor for the market, showed a stabilizing trend, and international oil prices fell for the second consecutive day as concerns over U.S. sanctions against Iran eased.

Futures prices for Brent crude and West Texas Intermediate (WTI) for October delivery plunged 3.89% and 3.12%, respectively, from the previous session.

Seo Sang-young, managing director at Mirae Asset Securities, explained, "In the U.S. stock market, semiconductor companies that declined the previous day led the gains. However, ahead of major variable announcements expected to determine the direction of the second-half stock market—such as Nvidia's earnings release, the U.S. personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index, and the Federal Reserve's Jackson Hole symposium—a wait-and-see sentiment flowed into the overall market, limiting changes."

It is interpreted that a cautious mood is continuing in the domestic stock market as well, with Nvidia's eagerly awaited earnings release just a day away.

Kim Seok-hwan and Kim Joo-yeon, researchers at Mirae Asset Securities, pointed out the cautious sentiment surrounding Nvidia's earnings release, explaining, "The semiconductor duo started slightly higher and then trimmed their gains during the session."

Heo Jae-hwan, a researcher at Eugene Investment Securities, said, "Usually, Nvidia's stock price always fell after earnings announcements, but this time the stock price fell in advance, lowering the valuation burden."

Nvidia's stock price had fallen for seven consecutive trading days before rebounding in the overnight New York stock market.

Researcher Heo added that this announcement would not act as a negative factor.

The domestic semiconductor duo is also repeating fluctuations.

Samsung Electronics is currently trading at 258,500 won, up 0.58% from the previous day.

It started slightly lower, but later turned upward and rose as high as 263,500 won (+2.53%).

SK Hynix is up 0.30% at 1,683,000 won.

Similarly, it started 0.60% lower, but has been repeating gains and losses during the session.

Among other top market-cap stocks, Samsung Biologics (1.01%), Samsung C&T (3.00%), and Samsung Life Insurance (6.49%) are strong.

SK Square (-1.56%), Samsung Electro-Mechanics (-3.38%), and Hyundai Motor (-0.48%) are declining.

Korea Electric Power Corporation (KEPCO) is surging 7.95% on news that the U.S. government proposed that South Korea jointly acquire a stake in U.S. nuclear power firm Westinghouse (WEC).

Meanwhile, SK Innovation is plunging 15.12% amid news that it will absorb and merge its separator business subsidiary, SKIET (SK IE Technology), as concerns over SKIET's sluggish earnings and financial burden were highlighted.

Looking at KOSPI sectors by industry, construction (6.21%), electric and gas (6.20%), and insurance (4.44%) posted high growth rates, while transportation and warehousing (-2.65%), chemicals (-2.24%), and metals (-2.09%) remained weak.

At the same time, the KOSDAQ index stood at 822.22, down 4.93 points (0.60%).

The index opened down 2.38 points (0.29%) at 824.77, fluctuated in early trading, and is currently continuing a modest decline.

In the KOSDAQ market, foreign and institutional investors showed a selling dominance of 1.1098 trillion won and 175 billion won, respectively.

Retail investors alone are net buyers of 1.1907 trillion won.

EcoPro (-0.94%), EcoPro BM (-2.58%), and Rainbow Robotics (-1.76%) are weak, while Alteogen (3.44%), PharmaResearch (8.32%), and Peptron (2.13%) showed upward trends.

(Photo: Yonhap News)