Stock Market Halved, When Do Foreigners Really Want to Buy?

Summary

Lee Ji-hwan, CEO of Aurora Investment Advisory, analyzes the sharp 50% decline in Korean equities and identifies supply/demand signals suggesting a bottoming process. He highlights record volume and retail capitulation in SK Hynix, foreign unwinding of downside bets, and a rotation into interest-rate sensitive consumer stocks while cutting semiconductor peripheral names. He also flags the risk of a further Fed rate shock.

• Korean market indices (KOSPI, KOSDAQ) have fallen about 50% in a month, unprecedented in speed.
• Supply/demand signals point to a potential low: SK Hynix record volume with retail panic, foreign put option liquidation, and foreign accumulation via program selling.
• The guest maintains core semiconductor positions (SK Hynix, Samsung Electronics) with hedges but has not added aggressively.
• He recommends shifting to interest-rate sensitive consumer stocks such as Apple, GM, Hyundai Motor, and Korean cosmetics for steady gains.
• Peripheral semiconductor-related stocks (power equipment, cables, MLCC) have fallen harder and should be avoided or reduced.
• Macro risk: potential Fed rate hike from current 3.5% could cause bond yield spikes, threatening equities later.