The KOSPI staged a strong rebound of more than 6%, triggering a buy-side sidecar immediately after the open and recovering the 7,300 level intraday. The KOSDAQ also triggered a buy-side sidecar, bringing relief to a market that had seen only "sell-side sidecars" since the 10th. Analysts say the KOSPI, which had probed for a bottom around the 6,800 level over the previous two trading sessions amid concerns over a semiconductor peak-out, is now attempting a full-fledged rebound.
According to the Korea Exchange, as of 9:10 a.m. on the 15th, the KOSPI index stood at 7,262.23, up 5.91% from the previous trading day. The KOSPI opened at 7,082.91, up 226.08 points (3.30%), and extended its gains. The KOSDAQ index also opened at 805.71, up 21.73 points (2.77%). By trading flows, foreign investors were net buyers of 134 billion won in the KOSPI market. In contrast, individual and institutional investors were net sellers of 95.6 billion won and 37 billion won, respectively. In the KOSDAQ market, individuals bought 43.8 billion won, while foreign and institutional investors sold 32.4 billion won and 11.6 billion won, respectively.
Top market-cap stocks surged, led by large semiconductor names. SK hynix (000660.KS) traded at 2,081,000 won, up 8.78% from the previous session, recovering the 2 million won level. Samsung Electronics (005930.KS) was also up 5.70% at 278,000 won. Semiconductor equipment maker Hanmi Semiconductor surged 14.70%, while buying interest spread across the ecosystem, with SK Square up 11.60% and Samsung Electro-Mechanics up 7.54%.
The explosive rebound in the domestic market was largely driven by a 27.29% surge in SK hynix's American depositary receipts (ADR) on the New York Stock Exchange on the 14th. British investment bank Barclays raised its target price to $330, forecasting a prolonged memory supply shortage. The start of related options trading on the Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) and the launch of leveraged ETFs stimulated investor sentiment. While SK hynix was rebounding in the 10% range in the domestic market on the day, a price gap of about 30% still remained with its ADR.
The easing of inflation concerns also added to the favorable mood, as the U.S. Consumer Price Index (CPI) for June fell 0.42% from the previous month. With price stability confirmed, the probability of a July base rate hike plunged to 16%. Experts are forecasting that the market will enter a full-fledged recovery phase going forward. Han Ji-young, a researcher at Kiwoom Securities, said, "Since the domestic market has undergone a record-level correction exceeding that of the financial crisis, there is no more room to worsen in terms of stock prices or valuations." He added, "It would be appropriate to set the overall market trajectory toward recovery rather than further correction, and to expand exposure again to semiconductors and other artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure-related stocks, which saw the largest correction."
