Domestic space exchange-traded funds (ETFs) that hold SpaceX as their largest component recorded among the lowest returns of any equity ETF over the past week. The decline stems from SpaceX's share price falling to its IPO level despite the stock's inclusion in the Nasdaq 100 index. Buying by Korean retail investors in overseas stocks also cooled sharply this month, dropping nearly 95%.
According to Koscom ETF CHECK, the "KODEX U.S. Aerospace" ETF returned -8.91% from the 10th to the 15th of this month, ranking 828th among 830 equity ETFs. "ACE U.S. Space Tech Active" (-8.88%), "TIGER U.S. Space Tech" (-8.09%) and "SOL U.S. Aerospace TOP10" (-8.02%) also fell to the bottom rankings. Over the same period, six space ETFs saw a net outflow of 66.2 billion won, with 32.4 billion won leaving TIGER U.S. Space Tech alone.
These products hold SpaceX as their largest component. ACE U.S. Space Tech Active, with a 30.52% SpaceX weighting, and KODEX U.S. Aerospace, with a 23.97% weighting, both fell more than 9%. By contrast, KIWOOM U.S. Space Data Center Infrastructure, which holds Nvidia at 8.18%, fell 4.52%, while 1Q U.S. Aerospace Tech, with the lowest SpaceX weighting at 14.20%, dropped 5.46%. The size of declines varied according to weighting and holdings composition.
SpaceX, which began trading on the Nasdaq at an IPO price of $135 on the 12th of last month, rose to $225.64 intraday on the 16th before continuing its decline, closing at $136.08 on the 14th of this month. That is a drop of 39.69% from its peak and 15.45% from its first-day closing price ($160.95). The stock fell on seven of the nine trading days this month alone. This is attributed to profit-taking following the surge immediately after SpaceX's listing, as well as the burden of a corporate valuation exceeding $2 trillion. A small circulating supply amplified early gains before expanding volatility, and the burden of artificial intelligence (AI) business investment came into focus amid continuing losses. The possibility that up to 20% of lockup shares could be released next month is also a concern.
Amid the poor share performance, the intensity of SpaceX buying by Korean retail investors also weakened. According to the Korea Securities Depository, domestic investors net-purchased $1.89307 billion of SpaceX last month, making it the top overseas stock. That was nearly triple the $640.51 million for second-place Micron. However, net purchases this month fell to $78.32 million (as of the 14th), pushing it down to ninth place. On a daily average basis, purchases fell 94.5%, from $157.76 million in June to $8.7 million this month.
Experts believe that with no comparable listed competitors, it is difficult to gauge a fair share price, while sentiment has grown stronger toward confirming actual profit-generating potential. Since ETFs also find it hard to avoid the volatility of the underlying stock, analysts say investors should watch the pace of monetization of core businesses rather than short-term returns. Whether space data centers can materialize as a technology to supplement power and water shortages on the ground is cited as a variable that will determine corporate value and supply-demand. A division head at one asset management firm said, "If earnings and the potential of space data centers are confirmed, funds could flow in," adding, "Right now, I think this is a good zone to buy SpaceX and related products in installments."
