KOSPI increases 2.6 percent thanks to institutional and foreign investors

KOSPI rebounded 2.6 percent after three days of decrease and closed at around 3,100. Institutional investors started buying on Tuesday again after a selling spree that lasted for seven trading days, while foreign investors snapped up Korean stocks. Samsung Electronics, one of the biggest listed companies, also saw their stock prices go up by 2.3 percent.

On Tuesday, the South Korean index climbed 73.73 points, or 2.61 percent, compared to the previous day to close at 3,092.66. The index posted over 3,100 at one point in the afternoon due to the boost from institutional and foreign investments.

Institutional and foreign investors purchased 594.8 billion and 412.4 billion won’s worth of stocks, respectively. “As KOSPI dropped by two percent for two consecutive days, investors who believed it could not fall any further scrambled to buy stocks,” said Seo Sang-yeong of Kiwoom Securities. The spike is also attributable to the launch of the Joe Biden administration and the confirmation hearing of Janet Yellen, which raised hopes of a hefty stimulus package. Individual investors who bought stocks for six days in a row, on the other hand, sold stocks worth more than one trillion won, profiting from price differences.

All top 20 companies by market cap but Celltrion saw their stock prices go up with institutional and foreign investors investing in their stocks. In particular, Kia Motors rose by a whopping 16.64 percent after it was reported that it would increase its supply of electric vehicle parts, while Hyundai Motor and Hyundai Mobis increased by 8.51 percent and 6.65 percent, respectively.

Samsung Electronics climbed 2.35 percent to close at 87,000 won, bouncing back from a three percent drop on the previous day after Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong was sentenced to two years and six months in prison. 2.04 million stocks were purchased by individual investors, 1.13 million stocks by institutional investors and 930,000 by foreign investors. Stocks of Samsung Group, which includes Samsung SDI (3.68 percent), Samsung Engineering (3.03 percent), Samsung C&T Corporation (0.70 percent) and Samsung Life Insurance (1.40 percent), also rose again.

Meanwhile, securities companies have stopped providing “margin loans,” which allow investors to borrow to purchase securities, amid rising concerns of an increasing number of people who borrow to invest. Daishin Securities stopped offering margin loans on Monday, while Mirae Asset Daewoo and NH Investment & Securities made an announcement about the suspension of the service. As of Monday, the balance of margin loan accounts increased for 11 consecutive days to record 21.346 trillion won.


Hee-Chang Park ramblas@donga.com