"Still Far From Recovering Its Losses"...KOSPI Hits 7,700 Before Narrowing Gains [Market Close]

[Financial News] The KOSPI (Korea Composite Stock Price Index) briefly reclaimed the 7,700 level during intraday trading, triggering a buy-side circuit breaker, but pared its gains in the afternoon as profit-taking emerged. Heavy net buying by institutions drove the index higher.
According to the Korea Exchange on the 10th, the KOSPI closed at 7,475.94, up 184.03 points, or 2.52%, from the previous trading day.
The index opened 3.57% higher at 7,552.49 and later jumped as much as 5.6% intraday, briefly reclaiming the 7,700 level. It was the first buy-side circuit breaker on the KOSPI market in five trading days, since the 3rd. However, the gain narrowed in the afternoon, leaving the index up just 2% at the close.
On the Korea Exchange Main Board, individual investors sold 772.2 billion won worth of shares, while foreign investors sold 322.6 billion won. Institutions were the only net buyers, purchasing 1.1314 trillion won.
By sector, most industries rose, including medical and precision equipment (9.1%), securities (5.92%), and machinery and equipment (5.66%), while telecoms fell 1.55%.
Among the largest-cap stocks, Samsung Electronics rose 2.52%, followed by SK Square, which gained 6.18%. SK hynix opened strong, climbing 5.4% and reaching as high as the 2.3 million won level, but its rally faded in the afternoon and it closed down 0.27%.
U.S. stocks closed higher overnight as hopes grew that the United States and Iran might return to negotiations following mediation efforts by Qatar and Pakistan. Sentiment also improved as concerns over the AI industry eased after Micron announced additional investment in the United States and Meta Platforms said it would expand production and investment in its own AI chips.
Domestic stocks also strengthened on the back of bargain hunting and expectations for the listing of SK hynix American Depositary Receipt. Kang Jin-hyuk, a researcher at Shinhan Investment & Securities, said, "As risk appetite recovered, large-cap stocks in domestic IT and industrial sectors rose in tandem." He added, "With the share of rising stocks in both domestic markets reaching 90%, buying momentum appears to be broadening."
The KOSDAQ (Korea Securities Dealers Automated Quotations) closed at 837.43, up 43.43 points, or 5.47%, from the previous session. The index opened 1.64% higher at 807.00 and later surged 6.53% in the afternoon, triggering a buy-side circuit breaker. It was the first such move in the KOSDAQ market in about 10 days, since the 29th of last month.
On the KOSDAQ market, individual investors sold 424.6 billion won, while foreign investors sold 160.1 billion won. Institutions were the only net buyers, with a net purchase of 582.5 billion won.
nodelay@fnnews.com Park Ji-yeon Reporter