Daily Pulse: September 4, 2026
KOSPI +1.64% | KOSDAQ +2.95% | Foreign cash plus futures both net bought: KRW 767B (~$567M) cash, 7,793 contracts
The Number That Matters
Foreign cash and futures moved in the same direction for the first time since Tuesday's liquidation: KRW 767B (~$567M) net bought in cash, 7,793 contracts net bought in futures. Two days ago, both legs sold simultaneously. Today, both legs bought simultaneously. The reversal is structural, not cosmetic.
Where the Money Went
Foreign cash buying concentrated in SK Hynix at KRW 527B (~$390M), Samsung Electro-Mechanics at KRW 199B (~$147M), and SK Square at KRW 136B (~$101M). Foreign net selling went to KB Financial at KRW 47B (~$34M), Woori Financial at KRW 42B (~$31M), and Shinhan at KRW 40B (~$29M): financials sold, semiconductors bought. Institutions added KRW 1.83T (~$1.4B) net, with securities firms the largest component at KRW 1.20T (~$890M); that figure includes program trading and trust-based buybacks not disaggregated in this data. The foreign and institutional buy lists overlapped on three names: SK Hynix, Samsung Electro-Mechanics, and SK Square. Retail sold KRW 4.14T (~$3.1B) net, absorbing the equivalent of more than five sessions of Tuesday's institutional outflow in a single day.
Why the Market Moved
1. Foreign cash and futures bought in the same session, reversing the dual-leg selling structure that drove the September 2 decline.
2. US 10-year yields eased to 4.77%, removing one basis-point of pressure from semiconductor valuations after Tuesday's 4.79% spike.
3. SKC announced a KRW 281B (~$208M) equity injection into Absolics, accelerating glass substrate commercialisation and reinforcing the advanced packaging supply chain narrative.
The Uncomfortable Question
Retail sold KRW 4.14T (~$3.1B) on the same session that foreign and institutional buyers posted their strongest combined semiconductor purchase since the September 2 selloff. The distribution is clean: smart money absorbed Tuesday's liquidation, retail provided the exit. Whether individual sellers are rotating into cash or cutting losses on leveraged positions is not in this data; neither is unpaid-balance or forced-liquidation volume. The structural question is whether this is a one-session flush or the opening of a sustained selling cycle by the only buyer group that absorbed the last four consecutive foreign outflow sessions.
Key Disclosures Today
SKC filed a KRW 281B (~$208M) equity injection into Absolics (glass substrate unit) on DART, representing an acceleration of its advanced packaging commercialisation timeline.
KoreaAlpha Take
Two sessions ago, foreign cash and futures both sold. Today, both legs reversed simultaneously. Calling that a confirmed re-entry into Korean equities would be premature: one session does not settle whether Tuesday's Iran-driven liquidation was an interruption or a preview. The conviction names are narrow, SK Hynix absorbed more than half of all foreign cash buying, and the foreign financial-sector selling alongside semiconductor buying suggests a deliberate rotation rather than broad index re-allocation. The unresolved question is whether the futures reversal holds on the next session, or whether a single macro headline can again flip both legs negative. The trade is simple: watch whether foreign futures net trade remains positive on Monday.
Data sources: Korea Exchange, DART, Naver Finance, Bloomberg
Research only. Not investment advice. KoreaAlpha does not provide personalised recommendations.
Flow figures are KRX investor-type trading value across all listed boards (KOSPI, KOSDAQ, KONEX), common stock only, excluding ETF, ETN and ELW; institutions = the KRX institutional total investor type.
