The KOSPI rebounded for the first time in eight trading sessions, lifted by foreign buying. Some analysts now see a W-shaped recovery, pointing to solid earnings at chipmakers, while others say it is too early to count on a sustained uptrend given persistent wariness about spending on artificial intelligence.
The KOSPI closed at 5,668.05 on the 16th, up 113.83 points, or 2.05%, from the previous session, according to the Korea Exchange on the 17th. The KOSDAQ rose as much as 6.14% during the session, triggering a sidecar mechanism on buy orders, and ended at 794.78, up 33.96 points, or 4.46%.
Behind the gains was a shift by foreign investors to net buying. They bought a net 345.6 billion won worth of shares on the main board, turning buyers for the first time in nine sessions. Foreign investors had sold Korean stocks for eight consecutive sessions, including net sales of 4.59 trillion won on the 13th and 3.77 trillion won on the 15th. Analysts said the buying reflected bargain hunting after valuations broadly fell, with the KOSPI plunging 18.8% through the 15th this month. Individual investors and institutions were net sellers of 484.7 billion won and 683.4 billion won, respectively.
The KOSPI had fallen for seven straight sessions through the 15th, its longest losing streak since September 2024. On the 15th alone, the index tumbled 454.59 points, or 7.57%, to 5,554.22, its lowest close since April 7. Samsung Electronics (005930.KS) and SK hynix (000660.KS) dropped 9.48% and 11.06%, respectively, deepening the decline.
Some in the securities industry expect a sustained rebound, arguing that chipmakers' earnings fundamentals remain intact. Earnings forecasts for Samsung Electronics and SK hynix have been revised upward recently. ASML said in its latest earnings release that customers' medium- to long-term demand outlook was improving, and market researcher TrendForce projected a double-digit percentage increase in DRAM prices in the fourth quarter. On that basis, some analysts say the Korean market could trace a W-shaped curve and recover.
Others, however, say the gains on the 16th are hard to read as a turning point. The rebound was weak relative to the previous session's plunge, and the durability of foreign buying has yet to be confirmed. Samsung Electronics and SK hynix each climbed about 5% during the session but lost momentum late in the day, finishing up 2.62% and 0.79%, respectively. The scale of foreign net buying was also limited compared with average daily net sales of nearly 2 trillion won earlier this month.
"Wariness about AI credit risk has spread across the market," an official at a securities firm said. "Earnings releases from companies in the AI value chain, such as Meta and Lam Research, will be a turning point for gauging where the market goes."
