Early Bell: KOSPI Shivers on Rate Jitters While KOSDAQ Lifts Its Head

Right now the KOSPI sits at 6,627.26, down 0.85%, while the KOSDAQ is at 812.41, up 0.70%. Compared to my last brief at 15:10, KOSPI slipped another 0.18 points and KOSDAQ another 0.20 points — yet the money flow tells a slightly different story. Foreign selling on the KOSPI eased off compared to last time, and on the KOSDAQ, foreigners actually flipped from selling to buying.

Behind this is last night's Wall Street session. On September 15, US Treasury yields and oil prices both climbed, dragging the S&P 500 down 0.45% and the Nasdaq down 0.78% for a second straight losing day, and the Senate's rejection of the CLARITY Act sent bitcoin tumbling too, bruising risk appetite broadly. That same session, cybersecurity names held up while copper/mining and AI-related stocks lagged.

For the rest of the session, I'll be watching whether the selling on the KOSPI keeps piling up, and whether that foreign buying that showed up on the KOSDAQ sticks around. My own book: Microsoft is sitting at +25.8%, Poongsan at +6.3% — comfortable spots — while KT&G is at -2.5% and HD Hyundai Electric at -11.0%, still in the red. That's just where things stand, not today's moves.