[Edaily Reporter Shin Ha-yeon ] The KOSPI extended its intraday losses, dropping below the 6,500 mark. The index is being dragged down as retail and institutional investors engage in net selling.

According to MP Doctor on the 20th, as of 11:23 a.m. today, the KOSPI is trading at 6,540.01, down 280.59 points (4.11%) from the previous trading day. The index opened at 6,643.58, down 2.60% from the previous trading day. Although it narrowed its losses to near a flat line early in the session, it soon turned bearish and has been extending its decline. It also fell as low as 6,515.24 during the session.

At 11:21 a.m. that day, the 20th sell-side “side car” (suspension of sell orders in program trading) of the year was triggered. The KOSPI sell-side “side car” is triggered when the price of the futures contract with the highest trading volume on the previous trading day (the nearest-month contract) among those based on the KOSPI 200 falls by 5% or more and remains at that level for one minute.

By investor type, retail and institutional investors are exerting downward pressure on the index with net sales of 335.5 billion won and 133.9 billion won, respectively. Foreign investors are the only group showing net purchases of 454.0 billion won, but this is insufficient to stem the index’s decline. Program trading, combining arbitrage and non-arbitrage trades, shows a net selling position of 474.9 billion won.

By sector, the electrical and electronics sector is down by around 9%. Most sectors—including manufacturing, construction, machinery and equipment, medical and precision instruments, finance, insurance, retail, electricity and gas, telecommunications, securities, general services, IT services, and transportation equipment and parts—are trading lower. In contrast, chemicals, textiles and apparel, pharmaceuticals, food, beverages, and tobacco, and real estate are showing slight gains.

Among the top market-cap stocks on the KOSPI, SamsungElectronics(005930)is trading at 242,500 won, down 12,500 won (4.90%) from the previous trading day. SK hynix(000660)is trading at 1,753,000 won, down 89,000 won (4.83%) from the previous close.

Following these, SKSQUARE(402340)(-3.22%), SamsungElectroMechanics(009150)(-1.64%), HyundaiMotor(005380)(-7.06%), LG Energy Solution(373220)(-2.84%), SAMSUNG BIOLOGICS(207940)(-3.15%), KB Financial Group(105560)(-5.47%), Samsung Life Insurance(032830)(-8.91%), and KIA CORPORATION(000270)(-7.41%) are all trading lower.

At the same time, the KOSDAQ Index is also showing a decline, recording 748.95—down 42.89 points (5.42%) from the previous trading day. While foreign investors and institutions are net sellers of 152.7 billion won and 36.0 billion won, respectively, retail investors are the only group showing net buying, purchasing 188.5 billion won worth of shares.