Seoul shares experienced a significant downturn Wednesday, plummeting over 12% and closing below the 5,100-point mark. This sharp decline reflects increasing anxieties regarding the potential economic repercussions stemming from the ongoing Middle East conflict. Concurrently, the Korean won witnessed a considerable depreciation against the U.S. dollar.
The Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) further extended its losses, sharply dropping by 698.37 points, equivalent to a 12.06% decrease, to conclude the session at 5,093.54. This follows a substantial fall of over 7.24% in the preceding session.
In response to the rapid decline, the Korea Exchange activated circuit breakers shortly after the KOSPI index fell by more than 8%, triggered by escalating geopolitical tensions.
Institutional investors engaged in net selling, offloading stocks valued at 579.4 billion won ($393 million). This selling pressure was partially counteracted by stock purchases from foreign investors and individual investors, amounting to 228.78 billion won and 72.9 billion won, respectively.
