First Day of Extended Trading on Exchange Draws Over KRW 1.8 Trillion: “Investor Demand Confirmed”

[Financial News] On the first day of the Korea Exchange (KRX)’s after-hours market, more than KRW 1.8 trillion in trading value flowed into the extended session, confirming investor demand for extended trading.
Meanwhile, trading value on NextTrade (NXT), the existing alternative trading system, fell by more than 11% from the previous trading day. With KRX’s extended-trading market now launched, competition between the trading venues to secure liquidity is also gaining momentum.
According to the Korea Exchange on the 14th, total trading volume in South Korea’s stock market stood at 972.91 million shares, while trading value reached KRW 27.6259 trillion. Of that total, after-hours trading volume was 72.24 million shares and trading value was KRW 1.8177 trillion. In other words, 7.43% of total trading volume and 6.58% of total trading value occurred after the regular session ended.
The fact that more than 6% of total trading value flowed into extended trading from its first day confirmed that a certain level of demand remains after the regular session closes.
By market, after-hours trading value on the KOSPI Composite Index was KRW 1.3252 trillion, accounting for 6.14% of the KOSPI Composite Index’s total trading value of KRW 21.5844 trillion. Trading volume was 22.18 million shares, or 7.46% of the total.
On KOSDAQ, after-hours trading value reached KRW 492.5 billion, or 7.68% of the total KRW 6.4107 trillion. Trading volume also reached 50.06 million shares, accounting for 7.42% of the total.
The higher share of extended trading on KOSDAQ than on the KOSPI Composite Index is interpreted as reflecting both the market’s relatively high proportion of individual investors and demand from investors seeking to continue trading after the market close.
The decline in NXT’s trading value was also notable alongside the launch of the KRX after-hours market. NXT’s trading value stood at KRW 1.7896 trillion that day, down 11.5% from KRW 2.0217 trillion on the previous trading day, the 11th. Compared with KRW 3.6662 trillion on the 8th, it had fallen to about half that level.
It is difficult to attribute the entire decline in NXT’s trading value to the launch of the KRX after-hours market. Various factors, including market conditions and trading circumstances for individual stocks, may have had an impact. However, it is clear that the launch of KRX’s new extended-trading market has made the competition with NXT for investor orders more pronounced.
Going forward, the key factor in the competition between KRX and NXT is expected to be not trading hours, but how many investors and orders each venue can continuously secure.
Even if after-hours trading value grows, investors may find trading less convenient if activity is concentrated in certain stocks or if there are insufficient remaining quoted orders. Conversely, if sufficient orders continue to flow in, the market can provide stable price discovery even after the regular session ends.
A financial investment industry official said, “The fact that trading value of around KRW 1.5 trillion was generated on the KRX after-hours market on its first day means that investor demand for extended trading exists. Going forward, it will be necessary to monitor not only the scale of trading value but also how stably quoted prices and execution liquidity are maintained.”
[email protected] Kang Jung-mo Reporter