"War Over" as KOSPI Reclaims the 8,500 Level... Will the Rally Shift to Shipbuilding and Defense? [U.S.-Iran Ceasefire]

Risk appetite returned after news that the United States and Iran had reached a ceasefire agreement, helping KOSPI (Korea Composite Stock Price Index) reclaim the 8,500 level. Foreign investors, who turned to net buying on the 12th for the first time in 24 trading days, continued to outpace sellers on the day, raising hopes for a turnaround in domestic market flows. In the brokerage industry, attention is now focused on whether the market’s recent momentum, which had been concentrated in large semiconductor stocks, will spread more broadly across the market.
According to Korea Exchange (KRX) on the 15th, KOSPI closed at 8,545.98, up 422.36 points, or 5.20%, from the previous session. As the index surged intraday, KOSPI 200 Futures rose more than 5% above the benchmark price, triggering a buy-side circuit breaker for the second consecutive trading day, following the 12th. KOSDAQ also ended the session at 1,034.03, up 4.98 points, or 0.48%, from the previous day.
Foreign investors’ second straight day of net buying also drew attention. From May 7 through June 11, they sold 75.9559 trillion won worth of stocks in the KOSPI market over 24 trading days, but after turning to net buying on the 12th, they purchased another 1.0271 trillion won on the day. Institutions also bought a net 514.5 billion won, while individual investors sold a net 1.4785 trillion won.
Lee Jae-won, a researcher at Yuanta Securities Korea, explained that "easing geopolitical tensions, reduced volatility in the won–dollar exchange rate, and the end of the SpaceX-related fund flow event combined to bring foreign investors back." He added that "the sectors seeing net buying are still mainly large-cap stocks, especially semiconductors, which had seen reduced allocations."
The rally was not limited to large semiconductor stocks. Of the 946 KOSPI-listed stocks, 676 advanced, pushing the gainers' ratio to 71.5%, while only 207 declined. Samsung Electronics and SK hynix led the gains, while shipbuilding and defense, Middle East reconstruction plays, and airline and travel stocks also rose, showing that buying interest was spreading across the market.
In the brokerage industry, some expect this rebound to broaden the market’s momentum beyond large semiconductor names. Even as KOSPI has hovered near record highs recently, the number of rising stocks has remained limited, increasing reliance on a handful of large-cap names.
Meanwhile, the won–dollar exchange rate also stabilized as geopolitical risks in the Middle East eased. At the 3:30 p.m. close, it finished at 1,511.1 won, down 8.7 won from the previous session.
koreanbae@fnnews.com Bae Hangeul Reporter