Kospi opens flat after last week's sharp losses
Foreign investors net sellers for 7 consecutive sessions
Samsung Electronics, SK hynix dip at open before recovering
The Kospi struggled to hold the psychologically significant 5,000 level Monday, swinging between gains and losses in early trading.
As of 9:52 a.m., the benchmark index stood at 5,073.83, up 14.14 points, or 0.28 percent, from Sunday's close, according to Korea Exchange.
The index opened down 25.49 points, or 0.50 percent, at 5,034.20, and briefly dipped as low as 4,990.66, a decline of 1.36 percent, before recovering above the 5,000 threshold.
Foreign investors extended their selling streak to seven consecutive sessions, posting net sales of 508 billion won ($374 million) on the main board as of that time.
Individual and institutional investors provided support, posting net purchases of 300.3 billion won and 158.4 billion won, respectively. Individuals have been net buyers for five straight sessions and institutions for four.
On Wall Street on Friday, bargain hunters moved into technology stocks following the previous session's sharp selloff, lifting major indexes and related shares. The NASDAQ Composite, which had fallen more than 5 percent in the prior session, rebounded 1.09 percent. The S&P 500 also rose 0.31 percent. The Dow Jones Industrial Average, however, slipped 0.46 percent.
Major semiconductor stocks bounced back, with Nvidia gaining 2.78 percent, AMD surging 11.04 percent and Micron rising 5.12 percent. The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index, which had plunged 12.25 percent on Sunday, jumped 4.21 percent.
The domestic market's recovery has been more muted by comparison: the Kospi fell 5.28 percent on Thursday before tumbling a further 6.02 percent the following day.
Han Ji-young, a researcher at Kiwoom Securities, said aftershocks from the panic triggered by the Democratic Party's proposed data center regulation would likely persist this week. "However, attention should be paid to the fact that the probability of a rebound has increased rather than a further sharp decline," Han said, adding that key macro data releases and AI earnings events scheduled during the week would be the primary factors to watch.
Moves in the two dominant semiconductor stocks were modest.
Samsung Electronics was up 1.4 percent at 191,500 won, after opening 0.79 percent lower and oscillating before turning positive. SK hynix was trading up 2.3 percent at 1.159 million won, having also opened lower before gaining ground.
Among other large-cap stocks, LG Energy Solution fell 2.2 percent, Samsung Electro-Mechanics dropped 2.4 percent, Hyundai Motor declined 1.4 percent and KB Financial Group edged down 0.2 percent. SK Square rose 0.5 percent, Samsung Biologics gained 0.9 percent, Celltrion advanced 0.7 percent and Samsung Life Insurance climbed 1.2 percent.
The Kosdaq fell 6.46 points to 637.81 at the same time. The index opened down 5.45 points, or 0.85 percent, at 638.82 and at one point dropped as far as 633.69, a loss of 1.64 percent.
yuni@heraldcorp.com
