Journalist

Choi Youn-sun
  • KOSPI’s Record Run Raises Red Flags as Margin Debt and Inverse Bets Surge
    KOSPI’s Record Run Raises Red Flags as Margin Debt and Inverse Bets Surge A booming stock market often carries a fear of a sharp pullback, and that risk grows when prices rise as fast as they have recently. Even without Warren Buffett’s remark that it can feel closer to a casino, warnings about overheating are growing. Analysts say investors should watch for “hidden bombs” in the rally, starting with debt-fueled trading. The Korea Financial Investment Association said margin-loan balances stood at 35.7131 trillion won as of April 30. After topping 35 trillion won for the first time on April 23, the figure jumped to a record 36.0681 trillion won on April 29. That is up more than 20% from the start of the year. Investor deposits totaled 124.7591 trillion won as of April 30. They had exceeded a record 132 trillion won as of March 4, shortly after the outbreak of war in the Middle East, then fell to 107 trillion won. Deposits climbed back above 120 trillion won in mid-April and have been rising again. Market watchers say deposits and margin balances rising together suggest more money is betting on further gains. In a market that has surged in a short period, even a small correction can trigger forced selling, accelerating declines. Heavy concentration in semiconductors is another concern. The market’s rise on May 6 was driven in large part by Samsung Electronics and SK hynix, which both jumped more than 10%. On the same day the KOSPI touched 7,500, decliners (679) outnumbered advancers (202) by more than three to one among listed issues, underscoring the narrowness of the rally. Some investors are already taking losses as the rally continues, particularly those making “contrarian” bets through leveraged inverse products. The Korea Exchange said the most net-bought ETF by individual investors over the past month was KODEX 200 Futures Inverse 2X, a major double-leveraged inverse product. Its return was -43.91%, and other inverse ETFs also posted losses of more than 40%. A securities industry official said risk management becomes more important when markets keep setting records, and warned against excessive leverage, derivatives trading and chasing prices higher.* This article has been translated by AI. 2026-05-06 17:58:15
  • Brokerage Stocks Jump as KOSPI Breaks 7,000, Mirae Asset Securities Up 15%
    Brokerage Stocks Jump as KOSPI Breaks 7,000, Mirae Asset Securities Up 15% As the KOSPI index climbed above 7,000 to set a new record, South Korean brokerage shares rose broadly. According to the Korea Exchange, as of 10 a.m. on the 6th, Mirae Asset Securities was trading at 81,000 won, up 15.22% from the previous session. Samsung Securities rose 5.22% to 145,100 won. Other brokerage-related stocks also gained, including Kiwoom Securities (up 10.53%), Korea Investment Holdings (up 5.15%), NH Investment & Securities (up 4.12%), Hyundai Motor Securities (up 10.67%), Yuanta Securities (up 16.09%), SK Securities (up 5.78%), DB Financial Investment (up 7.37%) and Hanwha Investment & Securities (up 16.73%). The KOSPI rose 2.25% from the previous session to 7,093.01, pushing past 7,000 and extending its run of record highs. The rally was seen as drawing buying on expectations of higher trading activity and improved brokerage earnings. Jang Young-im, a researcher at SK Securities, said April’s average daily trading value and margin loan balances “held at solid levels,” adding that “with the stock market continuing to show strength, a favorable environment for the securities industry is also continuing into the second quarter.”* This article has been translated by AI. 2026-05-06 10:15:00
  • LS Securities Raises KEPCO Engineering Target 12% on Expected Profit Rebound
    LS Securities Raises KEPCO Engineering Target 12% on Expected Profit Rebound LS Securities on Wednesday raised its target price for KEPCO Engineering & Construction to 230,000 won from 190,000 won, saying the company’s operating performance is expected to rebound sharply this year after what it called a transitional slump last year. It maintained a “buy” rating. Analyst Seong Jong-hwa said first-quarter operating profit is forecast at 10.1 billion won and revenue at 120.1 billion won, up 751% and 25%, respectively, from a year earlier. Revenue is expected to match the market consensus, while operating profit is projected to beat it by a wide margin, he said. For the full year, LS Securities forecast operating profit of 66.3 billion won and revenue of 622.3 billion won, up 87% and 20% from a year earlier. Seong said the estimates reflect a recovery in progress rates for major design projects, pre-design revenue for Dukovany units 5 and 6, and orders for renewable-energy EPC (engineering, procurement and construction) projects. Seong said this year’s results are expected to normalize on a dramatic rebound from last year’s weakness, but added that the stock’s cycle is difficult to explain based solely on fundamental value tied to near- and midterm earnings trends. He said the company’s valuation also requires pricing in the long-term direction of nuclear power expansion at home and abroad, but that estimating value based on complex assumptions and probabilities — including schedules, order prospects and deal sizes for major nuclear equipment projects — is itself uncertain. Citing a favorable nuclear market environment, strong long-term growth potential and the company’s position as a nuclear design firm and a representative nuclear EPC stock, Seong said the shares could be dull in periods without nuclear-related events or issues. Still, he said, it remains a representative long-term nuclear investment tied to the sector’s long-term growth trajectory at home and abroad.* This article has been translated by AI. 2026-05-06 08:40:15
  • NXT to Start Charging for Market Data as KRX Raises Prices, Expands Services
    NXT to Start Charging for Market Data as KRX Raises Prices, Expands Services Nextrade (NXT) is moving to charge for market data it has provided for free. With the Korea Exchange (KRX) also revamping prices and services, South Korea’s stock-market data business is entering a more direct monetization phase. According to the financial investment industry on May 5, Nextrade plans to begin charging for market data starting next March. A Nextrade official said, “NXT has provided data free of charge since launching in March last year, but we plan to switch to a paid system starting next March.” Nextrade has already signed data-supply contracts with major market-information providers in and outside South Korea and is pushing to convert previously free data into paid products. The company is expected to set its rates at about half the Korea Exchange level and expects data-business revenue to grow to 10% to 20% of total sales. It is also preparing internally, including by tightening accounting procedures. The exchange is also accelerating efforts to reorganize and expand the business through pricing adjustments and service changes, including raising prices in March for “historical data,” which provides past figures. Brokerages said it was effectively the first price increase since commercial sales of historical data began in 2017. A KRX official said revenue in the segment was 1.9 billion won in 2024, but “after the Kospi enjoyed a boom last year, including ranking first in returns among major countries’ indexes, it jumped to 4.2 billion won, up 121% in a year.” The official added, “By understanding customer preferences and offering standardized products, we improved convenience in selecting and using data by market unit.” KRX is focusing on improving delivery speed by adopting cloud-based infrastructure. It is continuing cloud upgrades this year and has also reorganized product structures. Since last year, the exchange has expanded subscription models to meet demand from customers who want daily data delivery. It has also built a system to automatically supply large-volume datasets, including order-book quotes and trade execution data, widening its service scope. To improve overseas investors’ access to data, KRX is upgrading services centered on the Korea Data Marketplace (KDM). It is also reviewing a data business based on disclosure filings and plans to introduce an XBRL-based disclosure system next year to explore ways to turn disclosures into data products. * This article has been translated by AI. 2026-05-05 15:39:14
  • Foreign Investors Chase Korea’s Rally, Pouring Money Into Surging Stocks
    Foreign Investors Chase Korea’s Rally, Pouring Money Into Surging Stocks Foreign investors are increasingly concentrating money in stocks that are already rising, rather than in undervalued names, reinforcing a trend-following approach. Despite the run-up, they have continued buying on expectations of improving earnings and relatively low valuations. Brokerages said foreign flows could be key to whether the Kospi breaks above 7,000. According to the Korea Exchange on May 5, the 10 most heavily net-bought stocks by foreign investors on the main Kospi market at the end of last month all posted gains compared with the end of March. Samsung Electronics was the top foreign buy on the Kospi, with net purchases of 1.3231 trillion won. Over the same period, its shares jumped 32% to 220,500 won from 167,200 won. SK hynix, the No. 2 net buy, rose 59%. The gains followed record first-quarter results from Samsung Electronics and SK hynix, fueling expectations that a semiconductor earnings recovery will continue. Other strong performers backed by foreign buying included Samsung SDI (up 70%), Doosan Enerbility (39%), Samsung Electro-Mechanics (104%) and Daehan Electric Wire (111%), with some stocks more than doubling as demand clustered in a few names. On the Kosdaq, foreign money flowed into growth stocks, including semiconductor equipment, AI chip and biotech names, many of which surged. Jusung Engineering climbed 107.58%, while FADU rose 70.18% and Koh Young jumped 64.62%. Jeju Semiconductor (49.29%), Hana Micron (42.81%) and HPSP (28.61%) also advanced. Many of the top net-bought Kosdaq names have shifted toward semiconductor equipment, materials and AI infrastructure, highlighting a growing focus on what investors see as core supply-chain plays within growth industries. Analysts said foreign flows have been moving around two main themes: AI and semiconductors, and power infrastructure. They cited expanding data centers and rising demand for high-bandwidth memory, or HBM, as drivers lifting related shares. They added that concentrated buying in tech growth stocks has been evident on the Kosdaq, while the Kospi has seen steadier gains led by large-cap growth names. Foreign investors net bought about 3 trillion won on May 4, the first trading day of the month. Many in the securities industry expect them to be the main force behind a potential Kospi move above 7,000. “Foreign investors continued net buying in May, following April, considering the Korean market’s earnings momentum advantage and relatively low valuation burden,” said Han Ji-young, a researcher at Kiwoom Securities. “They will be the supply-and-demand driver that brings the Kospi into the 7,000 range.” Meanwhile, the average return for the 10 stocks most heavily net bought by individual investors was 18.3%. Of the top 10 net-bought names by individuals last month, eight posted gains from the end of March, while two declined. * This article has been translated by AI. 2026-05-05 14:33:06
  • Gold Prices Slide About 20%, Dragging Down Gold ETFs as Safe-Haven Appeal Wavers
    Gold Prices Slide About 20%, Dragging Down Gold ETFs as Safe-Haven Appeal Wavers Gold, long seen as a key safe-haven asset, has fallen sharply in the wake of the war in the Middle East, drawing attention to shifting and potentially volatile money flows into gold-related exchange-traded funds. As gold weakens despite heightened geopolitical risk, analysts say investor sentiment appears to be changing. According to the Korea Exchange on May 3, as of April 30 the domestic gold price on the KRX Gold Market was 217,240 won per gram, the lowest level so far this month. That is about 20% below the record high set on Jan. 29, when the closing price reached 269,810 won. The decline has weighed on gold ETF prices. Based on April 30 closing prices, ACE KRX Physical Gold ended at 30,340 won, TIGER KRX Physical Gold at 14,430 won, and KODEX Gold Futures (H) at 25,935 won, with all showing a broadly weaker trend. The drop is clearer compared with about two weeks earlier. On April 13, ACE KRX Physical Gold closed at 31,605 won, TIGER KRX Physical Gold at 15,115 won, and KODEX Gold Futures (H) at 26,870 won, indicating that ETF prices fell alongside the recent pullback in gold. Even compared with the post-war low on March 23, the rebound has been limited. As of April 30, ACE KRX Physical Gold rose about 3.67% from 29,265 won to 30,340 won, while TIGER KRX Physical Gold gained 8.20% from 13,970 won to 14,430 won. Over the same period, KODEX Gold Futures (H) climbed 7.17% from 24,200 won to 25,935 won. Market participants have pointed to a stronger dollar and shifts in global liquidity as key factors behind the sharp fall in gold. They also say that even as tensions in the Middle East have intensified, demand for safe-haven assets has spread to other areas, weakening gold’s relative appeal. Experts are watching for wider short-term swings in gold and related ETFs. They say the next direction for gold will depend heavily on U.S. interest-rate policy and the dollar’s path, and that investors in gold ETFs should be mindful of near-term volatility while taking a longer-term view. Still, some see a strong chance that prices could resume an upward trend over the medium to long term, supported by safe-haven demand and expectations around monetary policy.* This article has been translated by AI. 2026-05-03 15:45:18
  • Korea Market Cap Tops 6,000 Trillion Won as 405 Firms Join 1 Trillion Won Club
    Korea Market Cap Tops 6,000 Trillion Won as 405 Firms Join 1 Trillion Won Club South Korean stocks have repeatedly set record highs, pushing total market capitalization above 6,000 trillion won and lifting the number of listed companies worth at least 1 trillion won past 400. According to the Korea Exchange on Saturday, total market capitalization across the KOSPI, KOSDAQ and KONEX stood at 6,167 trillion won as of April 29. The number of listed firms with market caps of 1 trillion won or more, including preferred shares, totaled 405: 267 on the KOSPI, 137 on the KOSDAQ and one on KONEX. As of the same date, 79 companies were valued at 10 trillion won or more. The combined market value of listed companies in South Korea’s 10 largest business groups accounted for more than half of the total. As of April 30, their combined market cap was 3,832.6471 trillion won, up 1,517.4573 trillion won from the end of last year, when it stood at 2,315.1898 trillion won. The gains came as the market rally continued, including the KOSPI’s first intraday move above 6,700, the report said. SK Group posted the biggest increase. As of April 30, the combined market cap of its listed companies was 1,139.7587 trillion won, up 89.6% from 601.0122 trillion won at the end of last year. Samsung Group’s combined market cap rose 68%, to 1,684.1052 trillion won in April from 1,002.4979 trillion won at the end of last year. Hanwha Group’s total climbed about 50% to 173.7212 trillion won from 115.6744 trillion won, ranking third by growth rate. Other increases were reported for POSCO Group (46.5%), Hyundai Motor Group (46.0%), HD Hyundai Group (44.6%), Shinsegae Group (42.9%), Lotte Group (42.3%), GS Group (39.3%) and LG Group (26.9%). Kim Jong-min, an analyst at Samsung Securities, said strong earnings led by U.S. big tech and South Korean semiconductor companies have offset macroeconomic headwinds. He added that signs of improving global liquidity and a Korea-specific “money move” have helped support the market’s downside. Lee Kyung-min, an analyst at Daishin Securities, said the KOSPI’s uptrend is “entirely based on earnings,” and he expects the rise to continue until forward earnings per share begin to turn down. Still, Lee said that as first-quarter earnings season highlights gaps between expectations and results, the market is likely to see a short-term cooling period and profit-taking. He said that even if the broader uptrend remains intact, investors should be prepared for near-term swings as sentiment retreats. 2026-05-03 14:19:03
  • Foreign Buying Lifts Korea ETFs as Asset Managers Push Global Expansion
    Foreign Buying Lifts Korea ETFs as Asset Managers Push Global Expansion As the Kospi extends its gains, overseas investors are increasing demand for South Korea-listed exchange-traded funds.  According to the Korea Exchange on April 29, foreign investors bought about 510.1 billion won of the TIGER MSCI KOREA TR from March 27 through that day. They also posted net purchases of 91.2 billion won in the similarly structured KODEX MSCI KOREA TR.  Korean asset managers are moving beyond basic product management and accelerating efforts to tap overseas ETF markets through local listings, equity investments and strategic partnerships. The U.S., the Middle East and India are key targets.  Hanwha Asset Management is seeking to become the first Korean manager to list an ETF in the Middle East, aiming to capture new demand. It is preparing products for local investors, focusing on Gulf markets such as Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.  Mirae Asset Management operates ETFs in major markets including the United States, Canada, Australia and Japan under its Global X brand. Its overseas ETF net assets account for more than half of its total, reflecting progress in its global business.  Samsung Asset Management has taken a 20% stake in U.S. ETF manager Amplify, seeking to broaden its reach by listing ETF strategies proven in Korea in the local market. KB Asset Management launched what it said was the first Korea-listed ETF focused on India’s digital industry, while NH-Amundi Asset Management is expanding ETF distribution in Europe through cooperation with global manager Amundi. Korea Investment Trust Management has also listed an ETF in Vietnam and has posted strong profitability, the report said.  Industry officials say the rapid growth of Korea’s ETF market has built management capabilities that are now aligning with overseas demand. “As competition in domestic ETFs intensifies, global markets are emerging as a new growth breakthrough,” an asset management industry official said. “Overseas expansion that combines local listings and strategic partnerships will expand further.” Analysts also link the trend to changes in how global money flows into Korea. As overseas investors increasingly access the Korean market through index products rather than individual stocks, ETFs are effectively becoming a gateway for investing in Korea. In response, managers are stepping up strategies to improve access by pursuing local exchange listings and building global brands, rather than relying only on products listed in Korea.* This article has been translated by AI. 2026-04-29 18:24:15
  • S-Oil Jumps Nearly 12% as Crude Prices Surge on Stalled U.S.-Iran Talks
    S-Oil Jumps Nearly 12% as Crude Prices Surge on Stalled U.S.-Iran Talks International oil prices surged, lifting S-Oil shares by nearly 12%. According to the Korea Exchange, as of 2:22 p.m. on the 29th, S-Oil was trading at 132,900 won, up 14,200 won (11.96%) from the previous session. At the same time, SK Innovation was up 11,900 won (8.95%) at 144,900 won. Refining stocks were seen gaining as crude prices rose after U.S.-Iran ceasefire talks remained deadlocked, despite reports that the United Arab Emirates would leave the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, or OPEC. On April 28 (local time), ICE Futures Europe June Brent crude settled up 2.8% at $111.26 a barrel. On the New York Mercantile Exchange, June West Texas Intermediate rose 3.7% to $99.93. WTI briefly climbed back above $100 a barrel intraday for the first time since the 13th. Meanwhile, CNBC reported that the UAE’s decision to leave OPEC would weaken the group’s influence in the oil market and, over the longer term, could push international oil prices lower. The UAE is set to withdraw from OPEC and OPEC+ — OPEC and a broader alliance that includes Russia and 10 other major producers — effective next month on the 1st, a move expected to reduce OPEC’s pricing power.* This article has been translated by AI. 2026-04-29 14:41:26
  • Loa&Co Holdings to Buy Aloys Stake, Take Control and Expand AI Media Platform Plans
    Loa&Co Holdings to Buy Aloys Stake, Take Control and Expand AI Media Platform Plans Loa&Co Holdings said it has agreed to acquire control of KOSDAQ-listed Aloys, a company focused on media platforms, as the Loa&Co group seeks new growth engines. The company said April 29 that it signed a share purchase agreement to buy a combined 6,994,990 common shares, or 20.20%, held by Aloys CEO Shin Jeong-gwan, the company’s largest shareholder, and research director Lee Si-young. The total purchase price is 11.2 billion won, or 1,600 won per share. Once the deal is completed, Loa&Co Holdings will become Aloys’ largest shareholder, it said. Loa&Co Holdings said it will keep Shin’s management structure in place in recognition of the current leadership’s expertise and will retain all employees to ensure business continuity. It also said it plans to quickly resolve a recent control dispute involving Aloys and build a stable management environment by forming a capable board. The company said it will strengthen the global competitiveness of Aloys’ core business in OTT devices while expanding into next-generation media platform businesses that incorporate artificial intelligence. It said it plans to target global markets through AI-based content recommendations and platform upgrades. An Aloys official said the transaction will change the largest shareholder and remove uncertainty over control. “Based on a transparent and stable governance structure, we will be able to accelerate execution of our mid- to long-term growth strategy,” the official said. A Loa Holdings Company Group official called the investment a strategic decision to build a stable portfolio and said the group will actively support efforts to resolve Aloys’ control dispute and normalize management. “By combining the group’s content capabilities with Aloys’ technology, we will help it leap into a company that leads the AI-based media market,” the official said. 2026-04-29 14:24:21