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KOSPI rose while retail investors sold more than 2 trillion won — Korea Market Close, Aug 26, 2026

KOSPI closed at 6,841.56, up +1.47%, and KOSDAQ at 826.4, down -0.09%. The two split again today, though KOSDAQ finished close to flat.On a day the index rose, retail investors sold a net -22,423 hundred million won on KOSPI, absorbed by institutions at +7,604 and investment firms at +6,752.Today’s

The Silmari
A daily data newsletter on the Korean stock market — silmari, ‘a clue: the loose end that unravels the knot’
④ Closing 16:002026.08.26 Wed · No. 23Sentiment — neutral (composite 0.704 · leveraged-ETF share in the 96th percentile)
④ Closing · published 16:00 KST · regular session confirmed at 15:30 KST · Note: flow figures are preliminary as published just after the close; the exchange’s confirmed figures appear in that day’s Final Edition (20:00 KST).
01 · VerdictRegular session confirmed (2-source reconciliation)

verdict at the close

KOSPI rose while retail investors sold more than 2 trillion won

KOSPI closed at 6,841.56, up +1.47%, and KOSDAQ at 826.4, down -0.09%. The two split again today, though KOSDAQ finished close to flat.On a day the index rose, retail investors sold a net -22,423 hundred million won on KOSPI, absorbed by institutions at +7,604 and investment firms at +6,752.Today’s closing values are still Provisional FigureA value that has not been finalised and may change later.Just after the close the sources can disagree, so carrying an unconfirmed figure leaves the next day’s numbers out of step. — the sources disagree and may be reconciled shortly after the close.

Key points
01KOSPI +1.47% and KOSDAQ -0.09% — the two split again, but unlike the previous two sessions KOSDAQ finished near flat.
02Retail investors were net sellers of -22,423 hundred million won on KOSPI. That is a large figure for a day the index rose; institutions took +7,604 and investment firms +6,752.
03By SectorA grouping of companies whose businesses are alike.An index can move on a few large caps, so sector splits reveal where capital actually shifted., construction and infrastructure rose the most at +6.72% while autos fell the most at -4.17%. Semiconductors were negative at -0.99%.
04Both forecasts placed this morning finished inside the 70%% bands placed for them.
03 · TimelineSnapshot — minute-bar readings

The day’s path

A window marking the hours when direction turned during the session

The morning’s gain was partly given back in the afternoon

KOSPI snapshotOpen6713.07· High6887.18(12:59) · Low6704.1(09:00) · Last6808.21
KOSDAQ snapshotOpen824.49· High832.21(09:04) · Low815.53(10:00) · Last826.87
04 · Top 10 checkpointsMinute-bar readings · low and high times included

Top by trading value10— snapshot

A window on how the top trading-value names have moved up to this hour

One KOSDAQ name reached 26% intraday before giving it back

Top 10 by trading value — prior close · open · gap · high (time) · close · change % · low (time) · open & gap data limited; will backfill when exchange collection resumes
StockPrior closeOpenGapHigh (time)CloseChangeLow (time)
Samsung Electronics257,000261,500+1.75%
SK hynix1,678,0001,688,000+0.60%
Samsung Electronics (Pref.)194,500196,800+1.18%
Samsung Electro-Mechanics1,362,0001,330,000−2.35%
Doosan Enerbility80,70085,800+6.32%
SK Square1,060,0001,058,000−0.19%
SK Innovation125,000111,200−11.04%
Hyundai Motor421,009408,000−3.09%
Daewoo E&C17,62019,100+8.40%
Hanmi Pharmaceutical501,000530,000+5.79%

Ingenia Therapeutics reached a high of +26.21% today and closed +4.71%, having also touched a low of -1.57% — an unusually wide range within one session.Alteogen closed +1.96%, Daehan Telecom +0.00%, Jusung Engineering -3.02% and Simmtech -3.59%.Why these names moved could not be confirmed in today’s data; each is still marked as having no identified driver, and no cause is attached here.

05 · FlowsIn Korean won · KRX

Flow summary

A window on how much foreign investors, retail investors, investment firms and pension funds each bought and sold

Retail sold and institutions absorbed

Foreign investors → retail · KOSPI (same-day correlation)Retail investors-0.849 (moves almost exactly opposite)· KOSPI0.524 (tends to move in the same direction)
Investment firms → retail · KOSPI (same-day correlation)Retail investors-0.612 (moves almost exactly opposite)· KOSPI0.594 (tends to move in the same direction)
Pension funds → retail · KOSPI (same-day correlation)Retail investors-0.17 (no clear relationship)· KOSPI-0.001 (no clear relationship)
How to read the correlationCloser to +1 means they moved together; closer to −1 means they moved opposite — measured in the current regime (2026)
06 · Top 10Close · change · flows by four investor groups

The stocks that moved the market — top by turnover10

A window on which investor groups backed the most heavily traded stocks

Nearly 10 trillion won concentrated in two chipmakers

Samsung Electronics led KOSPI Trading ValueThe total money value of shares bought and sold over a period.Being a money figure rather than a share count, it shows where capital concentrated that day. at 51,097 hundred million won, with SK hynix second at 49,757. Together they accounted for a large share of the day’s KOSPI trading.Samsung Electronics travelled from a low of -0.58% to a high of +3.7% before closing +1.75%; SK hynix gave back much of a +3.4% high to finish +0.60%.Doosan Enerbility was the largest riser near the top of KOSPI at +6.32%.

Top 10 by turnover (KOSPI)
StockCloseChangeTurnoverForeign investorsInstitutionsInvestment firmsPension fundsRetail investors
Samsung Electronics₩261,500 (≈$189.01)+1.75%₩5.11tn+₩671.3bn+₩132.6bn+₩184.2bn−₩35.8bn−₩1.28tn
SK hynix₩1,688,000 (≈$1,220.09)+0.60%₩4.98tn−₩382.1bn+₩6.7bn+₩16.6bn−₩9.5bn−₩710.2bn
Samsung Electronics (Pref.)₩196,800 (≈$142.25)+1.18%₩670.4bn−₩22.0bn+₩34.9bn+₩10.7bn−₩0.8bn−₩22.2bn
Samsung Electro-Mechanics₩1,330,000 (≈$961.33)−2.35%₩651.6bn+₩11.7bn−₩36.7bn+₩5.0bn−₩20.7bn+₩26.2bn
Doosan Enerbility₩85,800 (≈$62.02)+6.32%₩544.2bn+₩6.7bn+₩96.1bn+₩38.3bn+₩30.7bn−₩105.5bn
SK Square₩1,058,000 (≈$764.73)−0.19%₩509.1bn+₩19.4bn−₩18.8bn+₩0.9bn−₩11.2bn−₩4.2bn
SK Innovation₩111,200 (≈$80.38)−11.04%₩456.7bn
Hyundai Motor₩408,000 (≈$294.90)−3.09%₩395.9bn−₩101.7bn−₩42.5bn−₩13.4bn−₩13.0bn+₩143.9bn
Daewoo E&C₩19,100 (≈$13.81)+8.40%₩384.7bn−₩27.9bn+₩22.1bn+₩6.0bn+₩10.2bn+₩3.5bn
Hanmi Pharmaceutical₩530,000 (≈$383.09)+5.79%₩300.2bn
Historical contextForeign investors / institutions / investment firms / pension funds / retail investors · figures in Korean won · Source: KRX
07 · Up 5 · Down 5Reason labels: [News] confirmed · [Pattern] inferred

Gainers5· Decliners5KOSPI & KOSDAQ

A window on the biggest gainers and decliners, and the reasons behind them

Construction rose, autos fell

KOSPI
Gainers · relative strength5 (KOSPI)
SK IE Technology (SKIET)+29.95%[Pattern]Turnover ₩99.9bn · machine ranking
Junjin Construction & Robot+23.86%[Pattern]Turnover ₩49.2bn · machine ranking
HanmiGlobal+17.00%[Pattern]Turnover ₩49.8bn · machine ranking
SNT Energy+15.33%[Pattern]Turnover ₩27.2bn · machine ranking
KEPCO E&C+13.63%[Pattern]Turnover ₩232.7bn · machine ranking
Decliners5 (KOSPI)
Hanwha Machinery & Service Holdings (3rd Pref. B)−15.79%[Pattern]Turnover ₩17.3bn · machine ranking
Kumho HT−14.97%[Pattern]Turnover ₩22.6bn · machine ranking
Pan Ocean−12.07%[Pattern]Turnover ₩49.0bn · machine ranking
SK Innovation−11.04%[Pattern]Turnover ₩456.7bn · machine ranking
Eagon Industrial−10.66%[Pattern]Turnover ₩10.7bn · machine ranking
KOSDAQ
KOSDAQGainers5
CP System+19.16%[Pattern]Turnover ₩47.8bn · machine ranking
Sungkwang Bend+13.55%[Pattern]Turnover ₩25.4bn · machine ranking
Nearthlab+10.62%[Pattern]Turnover ₩77.8bn · machine ranking
Psomagen+10.40%[Pattern]Turnover ₩12.5bn · machine ranking
Penetrium Bioscience+10.32%[Pattern]Turnover ₩10.8bn · machine ranking
KOSDAQDecliners5
ANIPLUS−19.43%[Pattern]Turnover ₩10.8bn · machine ranking
PS Electronics−11.57%[Pattern]Turnover ₩33.3bn · machine ranking
YEST−6.87%[Pattern]Turnover ₩10.9bn · machine ranking
HLB −4.70%[Pattern]Turnover ₩37.8bn · machine ranking
Kolon TissueGene−4.61%[Pattern]Turnover ₩30.9bn · machine ranking

Among sectors, construction and infrastructure rose +6.72%, power and electrical +3.54%, consumer and entertainment +1.91% and financials +1.05%.On the other side, autos fell -4.17%, shipbuilding and shipping -1.83%, energy and chemicals -1.56% and semiconductors -0.99%.The large caps that lifted the index and the sector averages did not move together: Samsung Electronics and SK hynix both rose while the semiconductor sector as a whole was negative.

08 · After lookas of 16:25 KST on 2026-08-26

After-Hours Outlook

A window on what to watch in after-hours trade once the regular session ends

What gets filled in after the close

Today’s closing values and flows are both provisional — the index sources disagree and may be reconciled, and the investor breakdown still awaits the exchange’s confirmed figures.KOSDAQ flows ran opposite to KOSPI: retail bought +1,929 hundred million won while foreign investors sold -917 and institutions -1,052.Japanese data in this edition runs to the morning-session close at 11:30 local time: the Nikkei 225 at +0.56% and the ETF tracking the TOPIXAn index weighting essentially all major Tokyo-listed shares by market value.Unlike the Nikkei 225, which leans on high-priced shares, it shows the breadth of the market. at +0.63%.All of these will be carried once the confirmed figures arrive.

Sources: Korea Exchange · NXT · own measurements · regular session confirmed 15:30 KST · The Silmari editorial desk. USD figures are converted at ₩1,383.5/$ — the won-dollar rate printed in this edition — and are approximate.
This edition organises and explains publicly available market data. It is not investment advice. Predictions and their scores are preserved without revision — the judgement is yours.