[Edaily Reporter Kim Hyung-il ] The KOSPI closed down more than 5% as profit-taking selling pressure surged following last week’s record-breaking gain of 17.91%. In contrast, the KOSDAQ rose more than 2% as buying interest focused on growth stocks such as biotech and robotics, showing a divergent trend from the KOSPI.

According to MP Doctor on the 3rd, the KOSPI closed at 6,257.45, down 338 points (5.12%) from the previous trading day. After opening at 6,358.27—down 237.18 points (3.6%) from the previous trading day—the index was pushed down to as low as 6,223.29 at one point during the session as selling pressure from foreign and institutional investors intensified. This is attributed to profit-taking, particularly in large-cap semiconductor stocks, following last week’s record surge.

In contrast, the KOSDAQ closed at 737.35, up 17.59 points (2.44%) from the previous trading day. The KOSDAQ, which opened at 709.99—down 9.77 points (1.36%)—at the start of the day, extended its gains during the session, rising as high as 757.6 at one point.

The 16th buy-side sidecar of the year was also triggered in the KOSDAQ market that day. At 10:28:08 a.m., the Korea Exchange triggered a buy-side sidecar—suspending the effectiveness of buy orders in program trading for five minutes—as the KOSDAQ 150 futures price surged. At the time of activation, the KOSDAQ 150 futures were trading at 1,257.3, up 75.8 points (6.41%) from the previous trading day’s closing price, while the KOSDAQ 150 spot index stood at 1,252.72, up 38.12 points (3.13%).

By investor type, retail investors bought 4.6527 trillion won worth of stocks in the KOSPI market. In contrast, foreign investors and institutions sold 2.8262 trillion won and 1.9475 trillion won, respectively, driving the index lower. In the KOSDAQ market, institutions and retail investors made net purchases of 166.8 billion won and 33.7 billion won, respectively, while foreign investors made net sales of 209.2 billion won.

Trends among the top market-cap stocks diverged between the KOSPI and KOSDAQ markets. On the KOSPI, profit-taking emerged, particularly among large-cap semiconductor stocks that had surged last week. SamsungElectronics(005930)fell 8.76%, and SK hynix(000660)fell 8.79%. SamsungElectronics(1P)(005935)(-6.81%), LG Energy Solution(373220)(-3.66%), SAMSUNG BIOLOGICS(207940)(-4.18%), SKSQUARE(402340)(-1.25%), and Samsung Life Insurance(032830)(-7.70%) also posted losses. On the other hand, SamsungElectroMechanics(009150), which continues to benefit from expectations of growth in the artificial intelligence (AI) sector, rose 3.42%, while HyundaiMotor(005380)(1.29%) and KB Financial Group(105560)(0.59%) also closed higher.

On the KOSDAQ, biotech and robotics stocks led the gains. Peptron, Inc.(087010)surged 29.97% to hit the daily price limit, while PharmaResearch(214450)(10.04%), LigaChem Biosciences(141080)(8.91%), ABL Bio Inc.(298380)(5.99%), Rainbow Robotics(277810)(5.77%), Alteogen Inc.(196170)(2.43%), and HLB INC.(028300)(0.65%) also rose. On the other hand, ECOPRO BM CO., LTD.(247540)(-6.67%), WONIK IPS Co.,Ltd.(240810)(-4.00%), #Rigaon (-3.90%), ECOPRO CO., LTD(086520)(-2.28%), and EO Technics Co., Ltd.(039030)(-1.52%) closed lower.

By market capitalization, large-cap stocks (-5.50%) and mid-cap stocks (-0.7%) fell in the KOSPI market, while small-cap stocks (0.25%) rose. By sector, textiles and apparel (-10.16%), electrical and electronics (-7.60%), and retail (-4.64%) saw the sharpest declines. In contrast, electricity and gas (0.77%), medical and precision instruments (0.73%), and paper and wood (0.69%) showed strength.

Across the market as a whole, rising stocks outnumbered falling ones. On the KOSPI, where semiconductor stocks fell sharply, 455 stocks rose—including three that hit their daily upper price limit—while 419 stocks fell. On the KOSDAQ market, 1,170 stocks rose—including 11 that hit their daily upper price limit—while 468 stocks fell, indicating improving investor sentiment centered on growth stocks.

Lim Jeong-eun, an analyst at KB Securities, noted, “Following last Friday’s sharp rebound, profit-taking selling emerged, centered on SamsungElectronics and SK hynix, causing the semiconductor sector and the KOSPI to weaken.” She added, “However, as demand for memory and AI chips carries over from year to year due to expanding AI infrastructure investment, supply shortages are expected to persist for at least the next three years. Considering the potential for large-scale shareholder returns, AI semiconductor stocks remain undervalued.”

She continued, “We need to pay close attention to whether oil prices and interest rates stabilize depending on the outcome of the U.S.-Iran negotiations scheduled for early tomorrow morning,” adding, “Volatility in domestic semiconductor stocks is likely to persist as investors assess the contribution of AI infrastructure investment to earnings through the earnings reports of U.S. semiconductor companies such as AMD and SanDisk scheduled for this week.”