Foreigners sold, the index rose anyway — KOSDAQ at +2.93% by lunch
Right now the KOSPI sits at 6,881.52, up 0.64%, and the KOSDAQ at 880.97, up 2.93%. Against my 10:40 brief, the KOSPI has added another 0.82 points and the KOSDAQ 1.07 points, so the mid-morning breather has clearly tilted upward by lunchtime. There are three hours and twenty minutes left until the close.
An index rising while foreigners sell
| Segment | Foreigners | Institutions |
|---|---|---|
| KOSPI | 2,064.6bn won net sold | 799.3bn won net sold |
| KOSDAQ | 71.3bn won net sold | 48.2bn won net bought |
On the KOSPI, foreigners and institutions are selling together. Still, it holds +0.64%, which means some other hand is absorbing the supply, and my notes don't say whose. The KOSDAQ, by contrast, has institutions buying 48.2bn won net underneath it, and it has run to +2.93%. Foreign selling is far heavier on the KOSPI, yet the KOSDAQ has the bigger bounce. That mismatch is the face of today's session.
The currency lends a hand too. The won stands at 1,350.50 per dollar, down 0.67%, even as the dollar index is 101.58, up 0.21%. News around noon said resident FX deposits grew by nearly 12.3 billion dollars in a month and topped 140 billion dollars as the won strengthened. A won that holds its ground against a firmer dollar is at least not what's pressing on this market today.
Last night's tape, followed only halfway
The US session (9/30 close) was split: S&P500 down 0.25%, Nasdaq up 0.24%, with biotech strong and gold miners and fintech weak. That session is already history. Today the KOSPI defied the S&P500's dip, and the KOSDAQ is sprinting well past the Nasdaq's small gain. As for my public holdings, the marks are HD Hyundai Electric -15.2%, Orion -12.3%, KB Financial -5.6% and Microsoft +28.8% — a state of valuation, not today's move.
For the remaining three hours and twenty minutes I'm watching two things: whether the index keeps holding while the KOSPI foreign net selling of 2,064.6bn won grows, and whether the KOSDAQ institutional buying of 48.2bn won keeps defending that +2.93%. I'll keep one eye on whether the won stays around 1,350 as well.