Kospi Gains as Chip Buybacks Offset Broad Investor Selling

South Koreas Kospi closed at 6,835.8 points on Tuesday, up 0.23%, as buyback-driven gains in Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix offset net selling from foreign, institutional, and retail investors alike. The index marked its second straight gain, having opened 0.52% lower after fresh U.S.-Iran airstrikes and a hawkish Fed speech from Chair Kevin Warsh unsettled global markets. The Kospi has since recovered from a session low near 6,617 on Monday. Chip Stocks Reverse an Early Slide Wall Street had fallen overnight, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average down 0.7% and the SP 500 off 0.33%, after Warshs Jackson Hole speech fanned concerns over a possible rate hike at the Feds meeting later this month. The Kospi has climbed the past two days. Image Source: Trading View However, the Kospi erased those losses in the afternoon as government data showed Koreas August exports stayed solid on strong chip demand, extending the Kospis chip-driven rally. Samsung rose 0.38% and SK Hynix advanced 1.14%, both aided by recently announced buyback programs. External uncertainty dampened investor sentiment, but strong buying from big companies backed up the index, said Lee Kyung-min, an analyst at Daishin Securities. Sellers Outnumbered Buyers Despite the Gain Trade volume was light at 263.7 million shares worth 17.5 trillion won ($12.8 billion), with advancers narrowly beating decliners 444 to 421. Foreign investors sold a net 491.9 billion won, institutions sold 634 billion won, and retail investors sold 539.8 billion won. Oil refiners gained on rising crude prices, with SK Innovation up 7.81% and S-Oil up 1.07%. Meanwhile, Hanwha Aerospace fell 3.99% and Celltrion slipped 0.48%. The won weakened 1.8 won to trade at 1,370.4 per dollar as of 3:30 p.m., reflecting broader risk-off pressure from the Middle East escalation. Read the article at BeInCrypto