Individuals and foreigners sold over $1.6 billion combined, but buyback-driven buying held the line
🎧 포스팅 1분 요약 / Post Summary
📌 1-Minute Summary
The KOSPI closed up 0.97% at 6,808.21 on August 26. Individual investors sold roughly 2.24 trillion won worth of stock and foreigners sold about 116 billion won, but buying estimated to come from Samsung Electronics’ and SK Hynix’s own share buybacks — booked under the “other corporations” category — brought in roughly 1.6 trillion won and held the index up. Samsung Electronics fell as low as 255,500 won intraday before closing up 1.75% at 261,500 won, while SK Hynix closed up 0.6% at 1,688,000 won after a similar dip. Overnight, Wall Street rose broadly on falling Treasury yields and oil prices, and the KOSDAQ closed roughly flat at 826.87.
Remember yesterday, when the KOSPI wobbled on disappointment that Samsung Electronics’ shareholder return plan fell short of the market’s expectations? The picture flipped within a single day. Today, it was Samsung’s and SK Hynix’s own buyback activity that emerged as the key force propping up the index. Here’s a closer look at how the KOSPI managed to close higher even as both individual and foreign investors sold.
① KOSPI opens lower, reverses course to close above 6,808
The KOSPI opened down 15.49 points (0.23%), weighed by caution ahead of Nvidia’s earnings report. But the index quickly reversed course early in the session, briefly reclaiming the 6,800 level in the morning, and ultimately closed up 65.47 points (0.97%) at 6,808.21. The KOSDAQ ended nearly flat, down 0.28 points (0.03%) at 826.87.
| Index | Close | Change |
|---|---|---|
| KOSPI | 6,808.21 | +0.97% |
| KOSDAQ | 826.87 | -0.03% |
② Individuals and foreigners sold — so why did the index rise?
On paper, today’s KOSPI should have fallen. Individual investors net-sold about 2.24 trillion won and foreigners sold roughly 116 billion won. Instead, it was the “other corporations” category that held the index up — a classification that includes companies themselves. Buying estimated to be Samsung Electronics’ and SK Hynix’s own buyback purchases came to roughly 1.6 trillion won, and institutions added another 759 billion won. This category has historically had little presence in Korean markets, but it has now become a central force in KOSPI supply and demand. For context, from August 3 to 18 — 11 trading days — net buying from this category totaled just 111 billion won, underscoring just how outsized the recent buyback effect has been.
③ Samsung and SK Hynix act as the market’s ‘buyback seawall’
Samsung Electronics fell as low as 255,500 won intraday before buying interest pushed shares back up, closing 1.75% higher at 261,500 won. SK Hynix followed a similar pattern, dipping to 1,662,000 won before rebounding to close up 0.6% at 1,688,000 won. Both companies appear to be actively executing the large-scale buyback and cancellation plans they recently announced. Lee Jae-won, an analyst at Yuanta Securities, noted that even if foreign investors pull back amid uncertainty, nearly 2 trillion won a day in buybacks over the coming months should serve as a powerful ally for the market.
④ Wall Street tailwind overnight as yields and oil both fell
US stocks rose broadly on August 25 (local time). The Dow closed up 0.30% at 53,577.40, the S&P 500 rose 0.32% to 7,677.28, and the Nasdaq gained 0.66% to 26,151.30. Large tech names including Nvidia, Meta, and Micron all advanced, with Nvidia in particular snapping an 8-session losing streak to rise 2.19%. The gains came as expectations grew for further US Treasury intervention in the bond market, and as fears of a military escalation eased following the Trump administration’s Iran sanctions announcement — sending both Treasury yields and oil prices lower. The one soft spot was August consumer confidence, which came in at 89.4, below the market forecast of 90.4.
⑤ Robotics, shipbuilding, and nuclear stocks also gain — Nvidia earnings up next
Robotics names including Rainbow Robotics and Robotis rose on expectations that Hyundai Motor will unveil its robotics strategy at an upcoming CEO Investor Day, while shipbuilders like Hanwha Ocean and HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering and nuclear-related names like Doosan Enerbility and Hyundai Engineering & Construction also gained. The market’s next major focus is Nvidia’s earnings report, due after the close on August 26 (US Eastern Time). Beyond the headline guidance, investors are watching whether CoWoS packaging capacity and HBM3E/HBM4 supply bottlenecks are easing, and whether production is proceeding on schedule without yield issues.
💡 Good to Know
- “Other corporations” is an investor classification that includes buyback-executing companies themselves; it has become a key KOSPI supply-and-demand variable amid Samsung’s and SK Hynix’s recent buyback activity
- Share buybacks and cancellations reduce shares outstanding and can lift per-share value, but their support for the stock price depends on the scale and duration of the buying
- Nvidia’s earnings should be available around the morning of August 27 Korea time, and the results could affect Korean semiconductor stocks as well
- With individuals and foreigners continuing to sell in tandem, volatility could pick back up if the buyback effect fades
In the end, it wasn’t individual or foreign investors who held up the KOSPI today — it was Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix themselves. Yesterday’s disappointment turned into today’s relief in the span of a single day. For that momentum to continue, though, it will likely need to be backed up by the two companies’ actual earnings and a broader tailwind from Nvidia-driven strength in the semiconductor sector. Nvidia’s earnings, landing tomorrow morning, will be the first test of that.
References
- Hankookilbo, “Samsung, SK Hynix Buy 7 Trillion Won Against Foreign Selling…Who’s Next for the ‘Buyback Seawall’” (hankookilbo.com)
- Money Today, “KOSPI Opens Lower, Reverses to Close Higher on Falling US Rates and Oil” (mt.co.kr)
- Energy News, “KOSPI Reclaims 6,800 as Foreign Selling Eases and Other-Corporation Buying Flows In” (energy-news.co.kr)
- Hankyung, “KOSPI Intraday Reclaims 6,800 on August 26” (hankyung.com)
- MS Today, “KOSPI Retreats Below 6,800 as Samsung Electronics Slumps” (mstoday.co.kr)
- Seoul Economic Daily, “SK Hynix’s 40 Trillion Won Buyback Cancellation…KOSPI Reclaims 6,800” (sedaily.com)