As the KOSPI plummets due to selling pressure from foreign investors, the KOSPI 200 Volatility Index (VKOSPI), often referred to as the "Korean fear index," surpassed the 55 mark during trading today (the 15th).

With the domestic stock market undergoing a sharp correction recently, investors' vigilance that stock price volatility could expand further appears to be growing rapidly.

According to the Korea Exchange on the 15th, as of 10:49 a.m. that day, the VKOSPI stood at 53.84, surging 8.93 points (19.88%) from the previous session.

The VKOSPI started the day at 48.05 and soared to as high as 55.64 during the session.

Based on the intraday peak, this is the highest level in about a month and a half since August 26 (55.85).

At the same time, the KOSPI stood at 5,553.14, plunging 455.67 points (7.58%) from the previous session.

In the main bourse, foreign investors net sold 2.2755 trillion won, pulling down the index.

On the other hand, retail investors and institutional investors net bought 830.8 billion won and 1.1999 trillion won, respectively.

The VKOSPI is an annualized indicator of expected volatility over the next 30 days reflected in KOSPI 200 option prices, and it tends to rise as uncertainty in the stock market increases.

Considering that its long-term average since 2010 has hovered around 20, the current index level is more than double the historical average.

The recent rise in the "fear index" has also been steep.

The VKOSPI, which stood at 36.81 on the 8th, rose to 40.73 on the 12th, and then soared to 48.53 on the 13th.

Although it showed signs of easing slightly to 44.91 the previous day, it surged again today to cross the 50 threshold.

Compared to the 8th, this is an increase of over 42% in just four trading sessions.

This is interpreted as the result of increased volatility in the domestic stock market driven by recent concerns over the global semiconductor industry outlook and massive selling by foreign investors.

In particular, as the stock price movements of major semiconductor stocks such as Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix have a significant impact on the entire KOSPI, changes in investment sentiment surrounding these stocks are acting as a factor amplifying overall market uncertainty.

The market is focusing on the possibility that the volatile market trend will continue for the time being as the fear index remains at a high level while foreign selling persists.

(Photo: Yonhap News)