Ideas
Buy Korean chip leaders on noise.
Big Tech firms are accelerating their own chip development, which should favor Korean memory and foundry leaders Samsung Electronics and SK hynix. Samsung's Citi downgrade and labor-union noise are short-term buying opportunities because the company's numbers have continued to prove the underlying semiconductor direction is solid.
Hyundai Motor benefits from robot hopes.
Hyundai Motor is not bad because European auto tariff news may trigger reflex buying after its sharp drop, while ongoing humanoid-robot news from SoftBank, Meta, and Tesla Optimus keeps robot-related expectations alive. However, Lee notes the rebound alone may not fully reverse the prior decline and retaliation risk remains.
Robot theme remains a key watch.
Lee highlights robots as one of the two main themes to watch. Big Tech is making aggressive humanoid robot moves, Doosan Robotics is collaborating with Nvidia, Samsung Electronics is pushing industrial robots, and Tesla Optimus mass production is expected in July-August, supporting Korean small and mid-cap robot names.
Ajin Extech has Samsung robot edge.
Ajin Extech is a robot name that had strong price action after Samsung Electronics said it would push harder into industrial robots. Its collaboration with Samsung gives it a company-specific edge within the broader robot theme.
Korea PIM pairs robots and cooling.
Korea PIM is a differentiated robot company because it makes robot-hand actuators and has also developed cooling technology that is being tested smoothly with a global company, giving it exposure to both robotics and data-center cooling themes.
Data-center backup power lifts batteries.
Cloud operators are scrambling for power availability, creating demand for UPS and BBU backup systems as well as energy storage. Chinese suppliers have a price advantage, but direct sourcing by cloud operators should favor Korean battery makers; LG Energy Solution and Samsung SDI have BBU technology, so Lee is positive on the secondary battery market.
SK hynix proxy sees supply rotation.
SK Square can see additional upside because investors who want SK hynix exposure but cannot keep increasing positions are rotating into SK Square and SK. The stock is already rising sharply, and Lee expects further upward room on this supply-demand rotation.
APR wins global brand recognition.
APR was named to Time's list of the world's most influential companies, the first Korean company to make it this year, and its cosmetics are popular with global celebrities. Lee sees this as validating its global brand strength, though she still stresses picking the right names in cosmetics.
AmorePacific lags on China exposure.
AmorePacific reported weak earnings and fell for three straight sessions before a small rebound. Lee says its China-heavy, large-cap cosmetics model is no longer the barometer for the Korean cosmetics trade, making it less attractive than indie-brand-led names.
Indie cosmetics brands lead H2 rally.
Lee partly agrees with the second-half cosmetics view. She says the cosmetics rally has been driven by indie brands rather than old large-cap China-exposed names, so the key is whether indie brands keep outperforming. Kolmar Korea and Cosmax are showing good flows, and stock selection matters.
HD engine edge lifts construction equipment.
HD Hyundai Construction Equipment has reconstruction and infrastructure expectations, but the newer edge is its engine business: ship engines have short lead times and are increasingly relevant for power and data-center needs, and HD Heavy Industries has already won related orders. The chart is holding its 10-day line and could break higher if it reclaims the 200,000 won area.
Watch construction support before buying.
Construction stocks have become burdened by excessive valuation and are no longer being rewarded for decent earnings. DL E&C's results were not bad but the stock fell sharply, and Daewoo E&C is testing 10-day support; if Daewoo E&C rebounds, DL E&C and Hyundai E&C could resume their uptrends, but Lee says new construction entry is not attractive yet and advises watching support around 92,000-90,000 won.
Electric wire peers attract power money.
Within the power theme, electric-wire stocks are attracting money: Iljin Electric, Daewon Cable, and Gaon Cable are strong, and Jeil Electric is attractive because it counts Eaton as a customer. Gaon Cable has added an AI business to its articles of incorporation, supporting the group's AI and power expansion narrative.
Daehan Electric Wire leads power cables.
Daehan Electric Wire is Lee's top pick in power. Its earnings were strong, and it has the key submarine-cable and ultra-high-voltage cable capabilities, global production bases, and Vietnam and Indonesia expansion potential that the market is looking for; the numbers are improving gradually and additional upside is possible.
Sanil Electric gains on transformer orders.
Sanil Electric won a roughly 50 billion won transformer order from Blue Energy, which could open the door to more global orders. It had lagged the transformer leaders, but earnings are recovering, volume was record-high, and a target-price upgrade supports additional upside.
SemiFive rides AI chip turnkey demand.
SemiFive is a custom semiconductor and 3D IC turnkey company that is benefiting from AI semiconductor market growth. It won a 3D IC turnkey order from a European AI company, has been linked to Nvidia-related equity interest, and the stock is breaking above its IPO high with strong momentum; Lee says holders should look for more upside and pullbacks can be bought.
Seoul Semiconductor gains on optical theme.
Seoul Semiconductor is showing strong momentum because its subsidiary Seoul Viosys gives it optical-module and optical-semiconductor exposure. Lee says this is more theme and flow-driven than earnings-driven, so it is better suited to traders who can manage supply-demand momentum.
NAVER lacks AI trigger, downside risk.
NAVER's earnings alone are no longer enough to excite the market; investors want proof that AI can become a real growth driver, and that is not yet visible. If the 20-day moving average support fails, Lee sees further downside potentially toward the early 200,000 won range or even the 180,000 won area, and new purchases are not attractive while better opportunities exist.
Power bottleneck keeps orders strong.
Lee says power is one of the two main themes to watch because global electricity bottlenecks are severe, power companies have full order backlogs and slots, and gas-turbine orders keep coming. Investors should not avoid power-related names just because they have already rallied.
Substrate shortage helps Samsung Electro-Mechanics.
Samsung Electro-Mechanics is attractive because substrate supply is tight. Lee checked and Chinese and Taiwanese substrate companies reportedly cannot sell because they have no inventory, suggesting strong substrate demand that should benefit Samsung Electro-Mechanics.
This 3PRO TV (삼프로TV) video, published May 04, 2026,
features Lee Ji-eun
discussing 005930.KS, 000660.KS, 005380.KS, Korean robot stocks, 108490.KQ, 127710.KQ, 448900.KQ, Korean secondary battery stocks, 373220.KS, 006400.KS, 402340.KS, 278470.KS, 090430.KS, Korean indie cosmetics brands, 161890.KS, 192820.KS, 267270.KS, 047040.KS, 375500.KS, 000720.KS, Iljin Electric, 006340.KS, 000500.KS, 199820.KQ, 001440.KS, 062040.KS, SemiFive, 046890.KQ, 035420.KS, Korean power infrastructure stocks, 009150.KS.
20 trade ideas extracted by AI with direction and confidence scoring.
Speakers:
Lee Ji-eun
· Tickers:
005930.KS,
000660.KS,
005380.KS,
Korean robot stocks,
108490.KQ,
127710.KQ,
448900.KQ,
Korean secondary battery stocks,
373220.KS,
006400.KS,
402340.KS,
278470.KS,
090430.KS,
Korean indie cosmetics brands,
161890.KS,
192820.KS,
267270.KS,
047040.KS,
375500.KS,
000720.KS,
Iljin Electric,
006340.KS,
000500.KS,
199820.KQ,
001440.KS,
062040.KS,
SemiFive,
046890.KQ,
035420.KS,
Korean power infrastructure stocks,
009150.KS
