Korean ETF Plummets Amid Unofficial News... Partial Recovery

Korea Economic Daily

Summary

The ETF reportedly fell by 1.6% alongside President Yoon's unofficial schedule announcement.
The iShares MSCI South Korea ETF continued to see declines for five consecutive days, with trading volume significantly higher than usual.
Korean corporate stocks in the U.S. market showed some recovery, presenting a temporary investment opportunity.

iShares MSCI South Korea ETF, Down 7%, Hits 52-Week Low

Over 2% Decline in Hanjin, 3.7% Drop in Coupang

Korean stocks showed a sharp decline on the New York Stock Exchange on the 3rd (local time) following unofficial news regarding President Yoon's schedule. The iShares MSCI South Korea ETF, which tracks over 90 large and mid-sized companies in Korea, fell by as much as 7%, marking a 52-week low. However, after the parliamentary schedule was finalized, President Yoon announced the lifting of the emergency declaration, leading to a reduction in the ETF's losses to 1.6% by the close of trading.

The ETF continued to see declines for five consecutive days, with trading volume significantly higher than usual. Over 35 million shares were traded throughout the day, which is ten times the average daily trading volume over the past 30 days.

Some recovery was seen in Korean corporate stocks traded in the U.S. market. Hanjin's American Depositary Receipt (ADR) fell by over 2%, while Coupang dropped 3.7%. KT saw a marginal decline of 1%, and Posco, a Korean steel manufacturing company, fell by over 4%.

News Source: Park Shin-young, Special Correspondent nyusos@hankyung.com