Bought on Hopes of 7,000, but a Day Later... Samsung Electronics Plunges 3.53% as Foreigners Sell 2.3 Trillion Won

[Financial News] The KOSPI Composite Index fell below the 7,000 mark. With Samsung Electronics and SK hynix declining together, foreign and institutional investors net-sold more than 3.5 trillion won in the stock market in a single day. Individual investors took the opposite side, recording approximately 1.9 trillion won in net purchases. Although the index recovered some of its early-session losses, the scale of selling by major investor groups was too large to immediately interpret the move as a victory for bargain hunters.
On the 11th, the KOSPI Composite Index closed at 6,909.91, down 124.01 points, or 1.76%, from the previous trading day. It fell below 7,000 in a single day from the previous day's 7,033.92. The index opened at 6,802.50, down 3.29%, and narrowed its losses but failed to turn higher.
The contrast in trading flows was clear. Foreign investors net-sold 2.3039 trillion won, while institutions net-sold 1.2255 trillion won. Their combined net selling reached 3.5295 trillion won. Individual investors recorded 1.8680 trillion won in net purchases, while other corporations bought 1.6489 trillion won on a net basis.
Although individual investors did absorb the selling, it would be difficult to say that they alone defended the index. Other corporations also recorded more than 1.6 trillion won in net purchases. Within the institutional sector, financial investment firms net-sold approximately 1.0397 trillion won, while pension funds and others net-bought approximately 265.9 billion won.
The market's pressure was concentrated on large-cap semiconductor stocks. Samsung Electronics fell 3.53% to 259,500 won, while SK hynix declined 2.21% to 1.812 million won. The KOSPI large-cap index dropped 1.91%, suffering steeper losses than mid-cap stocks, which fell 0.04%, and small-cap stocks, which declined 0.18%. Weakness in the large-cap stocks that had driven the index pulled down the broader market.
Kang Jin-hyuk, a senior researcher at Shinhan Investment & Securities, assessed that "investment sentiment deteriorated, centered on semiconductors, as the increases in oil prices and interest rates expanded further." He also pointed out that "foreign investors continued selling spot and futures contracts amid the weakness in semiconductors during the session."
West Texas Intermediate crude oil (WTI) rose to around $102 per barrel, while the U.S. 10-year Treasury yield broke above 4.96%. Analysts said that even if expectations for semiconductor and artificial intelligence (AI) demand persist, the market remains unable to avoid the burden of rising oil prices and interest rates.
Meanwhile, the KOSDAQ fell 16.28 points, or 1.95%, to close at 820.64.

[email protected] Choi Du-seon Reporter