Institutions held up KOSPI, but not like this morning

With 20 minutes left before the close, KOSPI sits at 7,035.46, up 0.40%, while KOSDAQ is at 834.95, down 0.16%. Stack that against my 12:10 pm update and KOSPI's gain has shrunk by 1.35 points while KOSDAQ has slid another 0.96 points — the morning's energy has clearly cooled off this afternoon.

KOSPI staying positive owes a lot to institutions, who net-bought about 1.519 trillion won and kept the index propped up, with foreigners chipping in a modest net buy too. KOSDAQ had no such support — both foreigners and institutions were net sellers there. A piece out today notes retail money has drained from this market, leaving any rebound hostage to foreign flows and Middle East headlines, which tracks with how shaky things feel right now. On a brighter note, LG Innotek rode overnight (9/21 close) chip-and-AI strength on Wall Street and popped another 4%-plus after a surprise earnings beat.

For these last 20 minutes, I'm watching whether that institutional buying holds through the close and gets KOSPI to finish green, and whether KOSDAQ's losses widen further. I'm also keeping an eye on whether the won keeps sliding past 1,384. In my own book, Nvidia, Microsoft, Freeport-McMoRan, and Poongsan are all still sitting on their unrealized gains, unrelated to today's swings.