According to fund rating agency KG Zeroin on the 17th, domestic equity funds with net assets (aggregated across classes) of 10 billion won or more and a management period of at least one month posted an average return of 9.60% over the past week (August 7–13). This performance outperformed the KOSPI, which rose by approximately 8.2% during the same period, from 6,296.38 (closing price on the 6th) to 6,813.34 (closing price on the 13th). Of the total 3,871 equity funds, 1,918—roughly half—posted returns that exceeded the KOSPI’s rate of increase.
The product that recorded the highest return during this period was the “Samsung KODEX SamsungElectronics Single-Stock Leverage ETF,” which tracks twice the price movements of SamsungElectronics. Its return reached 33.78%.
Following closely were: △Hana 1Q SamsungElectronics Futures Single-Stock Leverage ETF (return of 33.66%) △Mirae Asset TIGER SamsungElectronics Single-Stock Leverage ETF (33.50%) △Korea Investment ACE SamsungElectronics Single-Stock Leverage ETF (33.31%) △Kiwoom SamsungElectronics Futures Single-Stock Leverage ETF (33.11%)—all ranked among the top performers with little deviation from the leader.
The reason SamsungElectronics single-stock leveraged ETFs dominated the top ranks in terms of returns was largely due to the resolution of uncertainty surrounding demand for memory semiconductors, as major U.S. Big Tech companies such as Microsoft and Amazon continued their AI investments. In addition, the sharp year-over-year increase in semiconductor exports in early August, along with the government’s announcement of a 5 trillion won semiconductor fund and additional trade finance support measures, served as driving forces behind the explosive surge in buying interest in large-cap semiconductor stocks.
In particular, when looking solely at the performance of the underlying stocks, SK hynix had previously shown higher volatility than SamsungElectronics. However, during this period, expectations for SamsungElectronics’ shareholder returns came sharply into focus, causing SamsungElectronics’ rate of increase to significantly outpace that of SK hynix and leading to an overwhelming ETF return.
In terms of sector-specific returns for equity funds, the electrical and electronics sector—which includes semiconductor stocks—posted the highest return at 11.99%, while the medical and precision instruments sector (11.39%) and the manufacturing sector (10.49%) also rose by more than 10%, leading the market’s strength. In contrast, the transportation and warehousing sector (-2.46%), the food and beverage sector (-2.95%), and the electricity and gas sector (-4.85%) posted declines. By fund type, general equity funds recorded a return of 8.93%, small- and mid-cap equity funds 7.99%, dividend equity funds 5.79%, and K200 index funds 9.03%.
Unlike equity funds, bond funds could not escape a downturn, posting a return of -0.14% amid concerns over hawkish monetary policy.
This was due to rising bond yields (market interest rates) caused by the heightened possibility of further benchmark interest rate hikes by the Bank of Korea, combined with supply pressures from government bond auctions and net selling of government bond futures by foreign investors, which in turn led to a decline in existing bond prices. By category, high-grade bond funds fell by -1.01%, medium-term bond funds by -0.44%, and general bond funds by -0.33%, while ultra-short-term bond funds with short maturities rose by 0.06%.
Overseas equity funds posted an average weekly return of 1.13%, buoyed by a moderate uptrend in global stock markets. In particular, multi-sector funds recorded the highest return at 9.94%, while the basic materials sector (6.55%), the energy sector (3.62%), and the healthcare sector (2.54%) also performed strongly.
U.S. aerospace-related ETFs dominated the top ranks of overseas equity funds. The “Mirae Asset TIGER U.S. Space Tech ETF” took first place with a 19.15% gain for the week, followed by the “Korea Investment ACE U.S. Space Tech Active ETF” (17.52%) and the “Shinhan SOL U.S. Aerospace TOP 10 ETF” (16.72%).
In global markets, the U.S. S&P 500 hit a record high as U.S. consumer and producer price indices for July showed relatively stable trends, easing concerns over a Federal Reserve interest rate hike in September. Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index rose, buoyed by a rally in tech stocks, while Europe’s Euro Stoxx 50 Index also gained ground as concerns over a U.S. interest rate hike eased.
Looking at domestic fund flows, the total assets under management (AUM) of publicly offered funds increased by 2.6798 trillion won over the week to 422.7640 trillion won. Driven by the rise in stock indices, net assets rose by 26.9620 trillion won to 575.2040 trillion won. Of this total, equity fund assets under management rose by 109 billion won to 20.4358 trillion won, while net assets increased by 4.3157 trillion won to 54.4220 trillion won. Money market fund (MMF) assets under management also rose by 2.8417 trillion won over the week, totaling 192.6595 trillion won.
An industry official stated, “We are closely watching whether expectations regarding the semiconductor market and the AI investment cycle will drive further gains in the domestic stock market for the time being,” adding, “In particular, given that the recent rally centered on semiconductor stocks is spreading to growth stocks across the board—including materials, parts, and equipment, as well as biotech and robotics—we need to observe whether this leadership in certain sectors will lead to a broad-based market rally.”
