Selling pressure widens before the close... What if there is a sharp drop tomorrow? / One positive for Korean stocks amid fear | Manager Park Hyun-sang

Summary

Park Hyun-sang, manager at Yuanta Securities Buchon Branch, reviewed a volatile Korean session in which foreign futures selling hit Samsung Electronics and SK hynix before the market recovered intraday, leaving the KOSPI lower. He expects Korean equities and semiconductor leaders to remain supported into the Jan 29 earnings window, then wants to reassess market leadership. He highlighted rotation opportunities in secondary batteries, bio, Hyundai Motor Group and robotics-linked auto parts, cosmetics, and brokerages, while viewing the Nasdaq as likely sideways with support near its 60-day moving average.

• Korean equities fell late in the session as foreign futures selling and Greenland-related geopolitical risk weighed on large caps.
• Individual investors bought heavily on the dip, but the market closed lower as some investors took profits.
• Park expects Samsung Electronics and SK hynix earnings on Jan 29 to keep the semiconductor upcycle narrative intact.
• If semiconductors pause, he sees secondary battery and KOSDAQ bio as potential rotation areas, with bio timing tied to post-Samsung earnings.
• Hyundai Motor Group is viewed as a leadership area due to the robotics narrative, with cheaper robot-linked auto parts as a secondary watch.
• He also flagged cosmetics as a two-day Samsung-down rotation and brokerages as beneficiaries of higher trading turnover.
• For the US market, he expects the Nasdaq to trade sideways, with the 60-day moving average as an important support level.