KOSPI again hits a record high…'Dream 4,000 KOSPI' not far off

KOSPI closes at 3,883.68, up 1.56%…record high again

Six straight trading days of gains…institutions switch to 'buy'

Sector rotation…secondary battery and defense stocks surge

The KOSPI index showed late strength on the 22nd, rising more than 1% and once again closing at an all-time high. Early trading was marked by caution over the possibility that a US-China summit might not take place, but the mood reversed as a low-price buying-driven rotation trade emerged.

On the day, the KOSPI finished trading at 3,883.68, up 59.84 points (1.56%) from the previous session. This marks six consecutive trading days of gains since the 15th. The index at one point in the early session widened losses to as much as 0.77%, but turned to gains around 10:58 a.m. and expanded its upward move.

Institutional bargain-hunting supported the index rise. On the KOSPI market, institutions bought stocks worth 762.3 billion won. Institutions, which had been selling in the early session, switched to buying in the afternoon and increased their purchase size. In contrast, individual and foreign investors sold stocks worth 54.2 billion won and 722.7 billion won, respectively.

Lee Kyung-min, a researcher at Daishin Securities, analyzed, "With continued positive sentiment from global stock market artificial intelligence (AI) momentum, expectations for government policies, and optimism about trade negotiations, every time the index experiences a correction, bargain-hunting repeatedly appears to support the downside."

Ahead of Tesla's earnings announcement, secondary battery stocks rallied on surging demand for energy storage systems (ESS) for data centers, with LG Energy Solution (4.0%), L&F (2.37%), and Samsung SDI (1.35%) closing strong. On the KOSDAQ market, EcoPro (15.15%) and EcoPro BM (3.38%) surged.

Following strong results from US-based GE Aerospace the previous day and order expectations from government and Hanwha operations in Romania, Hyundai Rotem (10.87%), Hanwha Aerospace (3.39%), and Hanwha Systems (2.61%) closed higher. Refining stocks also jumped on expectations of improved refining margins from stable oil prices, including SK Chemicals (13.14%), S-Oil (6.61%), and GS (5.84%).

LG Chem (13.01%) surged amid the impact of the launch of shareholder activism by a UK-based hedge fund. Among other large-cap KOSPI stocks, HD Hyundai Heavy Industries (3.2%), Samsung Biologics (2.53%), Kia (1.99%), Hyundai Motor (1.75%), Samsung Electronics (1.13%), and SK Hynix (0.52%) rose, while Doosan Enerbility (-1.25%), KB Financial (-0.6%), and Celltrion (-0.22%) fell.

The KOSDAQ index closed at 879.15, up 6.65 points (0.76%) from the previous session. The KOSDAQ also started the day flat and saw fluctuations through the afternoon before showing late strength and turning to gains.

On the KOSDAQ market, individual investors bought stocks worth 178.3 billion won, while foreign and institutional investors sold stocks worth 66.2 billion won and 99.1 billion won, respectively.

Among top KOSDAQ market caps, Alteogen (1.92%), CareGen (1.44%), RINO (1.23%), and Riga Chem Bio (0.37%) rose, while Peptron (-3.85%), HLB (-3.49%), ABL Bio (-1.37%), PharmaResearch (-0.71%), and Rainbow Robotics (-0.15%) fell.

In the Seoul foreign exchange market, the won-dollar exchange rate closed the week at 1,429.8 won, up 2 won from the previous session.

Ko Jeong-sam, Hankyung.com reporter jsk@hankyung.com