07/29 Korea Market Morning Briefing — KOSPI Plunges 10.84%, Spot Selling and Futures Buying Diverge

KOSPI closed at 6,023.66, down 10.84% from the previous session's 6,755.75, while KOSDAQ fell 7.72% to 705.85. KOSPI trading value was recorded at 36.07 trillion KRW, and KOSDAQ at 4.77 trillion KRW. As heavy trading volume accompanied the steep decline, the immediate priority today is to confirm whether foreign spot selling stabilizes and whether selling pressure re-emerges near yesterday's lows, rather than anticipating a quick rebound.

On KOSPI, foreign investors recorded net selling of 4.50 trillion KRW, institutions recorded net buying of 183.0 billion KRW, and retail investors recorded net buying of 4.32 trillion KRW. On KOSDAQ, foreign investors were net buyers of 86.0 billion KRW, while institutions were net sellers of 134.5 billion KRW and retail investors were net buyers of 48.0 billion KRW.

In KOSPI200 futures, foreign investors were net buyers of 5,019 contracts while institutions were net sellers of 5,902 contracts. The simultaneous appearance of massive foreign spot selling and foreign futures buying signals that market directionality is not simple. US overnight futures showed Dow futures +1.04%, S&P500 futures +0.25%, and Nasdaq100 futures -0.87%, indicating lingering caution in tech stocks.

The key aspect of yesterday's supply and demand was foreign selling centered on KOSPI large caps alongside massive standby retail buying. On a day of market-wide sharp decline, retail net buying does not immediately signal a market bottom; thus, it is data-wise rational to monitor both the potential reduction in foreign selling volume and the sustainability of institutional buying today. Raw flow data for Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix were logged internally, but raw individual stock metrics are not republished in this public briefing.

In yesterday's key DART disclosures, Hanmi Pharmaceutical's treasury stock disposal decision, Hanmi Science's treasury stock disposal decision, SK D&D's rights offering decision, and GST's treasury stock acquisition trust agreement decision were confirmed. Among these, the treasury stock disposals by Hanmi Pharmaceutical and Hanmi Science may be tied to group governance and capital policies, requiring verification of specific disposal purposes, quantities, and targets in the original filings. Disclosures were selected based on DART original filings.

According to Bank of Korea ECOS on July 28, KORIBOR was 2.97% for 3-month, 3.24% for 6-month, and 3.70% for 12-month terms. Treasury bond and credit spread figures were not provided in this lookup, limiting interest rate direction interpretations. Today's schedule represents a window where pre-market economic events alongside caution regarding the US FOMC and mega-tech earnings may be reflected simultaneously. In particular, it is necessary to watch whether weakness in Nasdaq100 futures spills over into domestic semiconductor and growth stock volatility.

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