Foreign 'Sell' Orders Send KOSPI, KOSDAQ Lower After Higher Open

The KOSPI and KOSDAQ, which opened higher, turned lower during trading.

The KOSPI, KOSDAQ and won-dollar exchange rate are displayed in the dealing room at Hana Bank's headquarters in Jung-gu, Seoul, on the 4th, as South Korea's stock market opened higher, buoyed by bargain hunting after a recent steep decline and gains in major U.S. artificial intelligence (AI) stocks. The KOSPI opened at 5,786.13, up 137.34 points (2.43%) from the previous trading day, while the KOSDAQ opened at 715.74, up 11.35 points (1.61%). 2026.11.4 Photo by Cho Yongjun

As of 10:38 a.m. on Nov. 4, the KOSPI was trading at 5,557.91, down 90.88 points (1.61%) from the previous trading day. The index opened higher and gained more than 3% early in the session, but soon pared its gains and eventually turned lower. Foreign investors led the decline. Individuals and institutions posted net purchases of 339.8 billion won and 171.9 billion won, respectively, while foreign investors recorded net sales of 633.9 billion won.

Most sectors turned lower. Share prices fell across all sectors except Telecommunications (+2.62%), Electricity and Gas (+2.04%), General Services (+0.42%) and IT Services (+0.02%). Entertainment and Culture (-6.09%), Chemicals (-2.20%) and Electrical and Electronics (-2.16%) recorded the steepest losses, in that order.

Among the 20 largest companies by market capitalization, shares fell at 17 companies, with gains limited to Celltrion (+1.84%), Hana Financial Group (+0.26%) and KB Financial Group (+0.07%). LG Energy Solution (-5.92%), Samsung SDI (-3.99%) and Kia (-3.11%) recorded the steepest declines, in that order.

The KOSDAQ also fell 13.81 points (1.96%) to 690.58. The index opened higher but soon pared its gains, fluctuated between gains and losses, and then moved lower. Individuals recorded net purchases of 71.3 billion won, but the index declined as foreign investors and institutions posted net sales of 27.8 billion won and 23 billion won, respectively.

All sectors except Publishing and Media Reproduction (+6.29%) were lower. General Services (-5.33%), Pharmaceuticals (-4.81%) and IT Services (-2.86%) recorded the steepest losses, in that order.

The 20 largest companies by market capitalization posted mixed results. Shares fell at HLB (-20.27%), Alteogen (-8.48%) and Wonik Holdings (-4.64%), while SIMMTECH (+8.90%), TSE (+5.69%) and EO Technics (+2.79%) advanced.

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