"How Much Further Can It Fall?" Balances Fluctuate as KOSPI Drops 5% After Two Days of Gains

KOSPI Ends in the 8,400 Range, Down 5%
Concerns Over Weakening Memory Demand and Profit-Taking Drive Decline
Sell-Sidecar and Circuit Breaker Triggered During Trading Session
KOSDAQ Closes Down 4% at 851.37

The KOSPI closed in the 8,400 range, recording a decline of over 5%. Concerns over decreased memory demand and profit-taking pressure caused the index to plunge, leading to both a sell-sidecar and a circuit breaker being triggered during the session.

On the 26th, the KOSPI index and others were displayed on the status board of the Hana Bank dealing room in Jung-gu, Seoul. On that day, the KOSPI closed at 8,411.21, down 519.09 points (5.81%) from the previous trading day, and the KOSDAQ closed at 851.37, down 36.44 points (4.10%). Yonhap News Agency

On the 26th, the KOSPI ended the day at 8,411.21, down 519.09 points (5.81%) from the previous session. The index started at 8,813.18, down 1.31% from the previous day, and continued its downward trend throughout the session.

Foreign investors and institutions led the selling. Individuals had a net purchase of 8.1927 trillion won, but foreigners and institutions recorded net sales of 4.6522 trillion won and 3.7846 trillion won, respectively.

This selling pressure caused the KOSPI to plummet, triggering both a sell-sidecar and a circuit breaker during the session. The sell-sidecar is activated when the KOSPI 200 futures index falls by more than 5% for one minute, while the circuit breaker is triggered if the index drops by more than 8% from the previous day for one minute.

The sell-sidecar was triggered at around 11:12 a.m., suspending the effectiveness of program sell orders on the KOSPI for five minutes. As the KOSPI continued to fall sharply, a circuit breaker was activated at around 12:10 p.m., temporarily halting trading in listed stocks for about 20 minutes.

The KOSPI is believed to have closed lower due to concerns over declining memory demand and short-term profit-taking pressure. After Apple announced product price hikes in response to rising memory prices, Apple's share price plummeted by over 6% on June 25 (local time). The fear is that higher memory prices will increase consumer goods prices, which could dampen future memory demand. In addition, after the KOSPI surged 8.9% over the previous two trading days, profit-taking led to further declines in the index.

On the 26th, the KOSPI index opened at 8,813.18, down 117.12 points from the previous trading day, as displayed on the electronic board showing the domestic stock market status in the dealing room of the Hana Bank headquarters in Jung-gu, Seoul. On the same day, the US dollar to Korean won exchange rate opened at 1,547.3 won, up 4.6 won from the previous trading day. Photo by Jinhyung Kang, June 26, 2026

By sector, all sectors except for medical precision instruments (+0.92%) saw declines. The most significant drops were in securities (-6.61%), electrical and electronic equipment (-6.47%), and machinery and equipment (-6.44%). Among the top 20 companies by market capitalization, all stocks closed lower, including SK Square (-9.43%), SK hynix (-8.36%), and Doosan Enerbility (-7.63%).

The KOSDAQ closed at 851.37, down 36.44 points (4.10%) from the previous session. Foreign investors and institutions recorded net purchases of 341.8 billion won and 308.1 billion won, respectively, but individuals had a net sale of 668.3 billion won, leading to the decline.

All sectors declined, including publishing, media, and reproduction (-7.60%), general services (-6.17%), and finance (-5.61%). Among the top 20 companies by market capitalization, five stocks rose, including PSK (+10.32%), Eugene Technology (+6.15%), and Wonik IPS (+5.88%), while 15 stocks fell, including Alteogen (-8.40%), Legochem Biosciences (-8.28%), and Samchundang Pharm (-7.68%).

Meanwhile, in the Seoul foreign exchange market, the won-dollar exchange rate closed at 1,532.0 won, down 10.7 won from the previous session.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.