The Morning After Black Tuesday, KOSPI Catches Its Breath at 6,035.35

Right now KOSPI sits at 6,035.35, down 5.46% from yesterday, and KOSDAQ is at 837.03, down 1.43%. Against the previous brief (15:10), though, the damage has eased: KOSPI by 0.35 percentage points, KOSDAQ by 0.44. This morning is quietly dressing the wounds from yesterday.

Two hands pulling in opposite directions

If I pick one thread for the why, it's flows. On KOSPI, foreigners were net sellers of 4,578.9 billion won while institutions were net buyers of 1,668.5 billion, and the foreign selling has swelled by another 2,567.9 billion since the last brief. On KOSDAQ, foreigners bought a net 133.9 billion and institutions 45.9 billion, both hands pointing the same way. In one market, the big board gets dumped on while the small board gets quietly collected. A wry little split.

On the news side, an editorial called yesterday 'Black Tuesday' and said the China-born chip shock knocked KOSPI down 348.89 points. The won slipped to 1,334.13 per dollar (-0.50%) and the dollar index to 102.19 (-0.38%). NH Investment & Securities read that as good for bank capital ratios, while IBK Securities read it as a drag on LG Display. One currency move, a different face for every sector.

Last night's U.S. session (10/13 close) was nearly flat, S&P500 -0.02% and Nasdaq -0.15%, with energy and consumer staples firm and aerospace and clean energy soft. Yesterday's drop didn't cross the ocean to us; it was a fire that started at home.

Six hours and twenty minutes to the close

What I hold is just a set of marked-to-market facts: KB Financial -8.3%, Hyundai Rotem -13.4%, Celltrion -1.6%, Microsoft +37.5%. Today I'm watching whether the 4,578.9 billion in foreign selling grows or stops, and whether the institutions' 1,668.5 billion in buying keeps holding up this recovery to the end.