The South Korean stock market faced a severe meltdown on Monday morning, with the benchmark KOSPI plunging more than 8% and triggering a "Circuit Breaker," a temporary trading halt aimed at stabilizing the market. This marks the second time this year and the eighth time in the history of the domestic exchange that such a measure has been implemented.
According to the Korea Exchange (KRX), at 10:31 AM on March 9, the KOSPI index dived to 5,132.07, down 452.80 points (8.10%) from the previous session's close of 5,584.87. Under current regulations, a Level 1 Circuit Breaker is activated when the index drops by 8% or more from the previous close for at least one minute. Trading was subsequently suspended for 20 minutes.
The collapse was driven by a broad sell-off of blue-chip stocks. Market bellwether Samsung Electronics tumbled 10.04%, while SK Hynix and Hyundai Motor saw even steeper declines of 11.58% and 10.40%, respectively. Defense stocks, including Hanwha Aerospace, which had previously shown resilience, also succumbed to the downward pressure, exacerbating market anxiety.
The downturn was fueled by aggressive selling from foreign and institutional investors. Foreigners offloaded approximately 1.8 trillion won worth of shares, while institutions dumped 1.2 trillion won. In contrast, retail investors sought to buy the dip, recording a massive net purchase of over 2.9 trillion won, though it was insufficient to halt the index's freefall.
Financial analysts noted that the recurrence of a circuit breaker just three trading days after the previous one on March 4 signals heightened market fragility. Experts warn that the combination of global macroeconomic uncertainty and supply-demand imbalances may lead to continued extreme volatility in the near term, urging investors to remain cautious.
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