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Monthly wrap · July 2026 · 22 trading days

KOSPI falls 22.2% in July, its worst month since 2008, as chip peak-out fears hit SK hynix and Samsung

KOSPI−22.2%KOSDAQ−21.4%KOSPI 200−23.6%

July was the worst month for the KOSPI since October 2008. The index fell 22.2% to 6595.45 from 8476.48 at the end of June. Sources point to fears that the AI memory boom had peaked, citing slowing demand worries, weaker memory export price gains and a debate over circular AI deals. China's advancing semiconductor industry and heavy foreign selling were also cited. The shock spread to chip stocks in Japan and Taiwan and in the US.

The chain ran from memory to the rest of the chip supply chain. SK hynix fell 35.2% and Samsung Electronics 21.4%. Substrate and component makers fell harder: Samsung Electro-Mechanics fell 47.7%, LG Innotek 47.6%, Foosung 55.1% and Korea Circuit 51.4%. Chip testing and packaging names fell 30.1% as a group, and equipment and materials names fell 20.9%. A report said retail speculation had lifted some substrate names sharply in the prior week before the reversal. Individual stories also stood out. Kolon TissueGene fell 86.1% after a US phase 3 trial of TG-C missed its co-primary endpoints, and Doosan Fuel Cell fell 56.2% after weak second-quarter results. Gabia rose 58.5% on a going-private tender offer.

Why the market moved

Fears that AI memory demand had peaked, a wave of foreign selling and China's advancing chip industry drove the KOSPI down 22.2%, with a record 17.9% rebound on the final day.12345

Top themes

Oil refining & chemicals

Middle East war uncertainty lifted oil and energy stocks1

The big stories

KOSPI's worst month since 2008 as chip peak-out fears hit

Fears that AI memory demand had peaked, plus foreign selling and the China semiconductor push, drove a July selloff in which KOSPI fell 22.19% and SK hynix fell 35.18% and Samsung Electronics fell 21.41% on the month. Retail investors sold a record amount while foreigners bought heavily in the rebound.12345678910

Directly affected

Next in line

Samsung Electro-Mechanics and substrate makers plunge

Samsung Electro-Mechanics fell 47.70% and substrate-linked names such as Foosung (-55.12%) and Korea Circuit (-51.36%) also crashed in July as the chip downturn fears spread. Analysts said retail speculation in these names had lifted them sharply in the prior week before the reversal.12345678

Directly affected

Next in line

Kolon TissueGene shares fall 86% after TG-C trial miss

Kolon TissueGene dropped 86.11% in July after the first US phase 3 trial of its knee osteoarthritis therapy TG-C failed to meet its co-primary endpoints. It was the largest decline among the 2,645 listed stocks, and the stock then hit limit-down for four straight sessions.1234

Directly affected

Doosan Fuel Cell sinks 56% on weak Q2 results

Doosan Fuel Cell fell 56.16% in July after weak second-quarter results, with the company expected to face stack replacement costs again in the second half. Analysts kept Hold ratings while raising target prices, and the stock fell further on no new disclosed news.12345

Directly affected

Gabia jumps 58.5% on tender offer for going-private

Gabia closed up 58.52% after DCK Investment, a Macquarie Asset Management private equity vehicle, launched a tender offer at 48,000 won per share to take the company private. Market commentary linked the move to Macquarie's response to activist fund Align Partners' governance demands.12345

Directly affected

Kumho Tire surges 49% on Gwangju plant hopes

Kumho Tire closed up 49.34% in July as hopes grew that its Gwangju plant would be relocated or redeveloped near the planned Honam semiconductor mega-cluster. The company reported Q2 revenue of 1.3328 trillion won and operating profit of 182.2 billion won.123456

Directly affected

The market

KOSPI closed July at 6595.45, down 22.2%. KOSDAQ fell 21.4% to 719.76 and the KOSPI 200 fell 23.6% to 1046.81. Sources say circuit breakers triggered four times during the month, including two straight days on both markets for the first time, and sidecars rang 15 times on the KOSPI. On the last trading day the KOSPI rose 17.9%, its largest one-day gain on record, after Samsung Electronics and SK hynix earnings and Amazon's confirmation of AI infrastructure demand. Of 2,764 stocks, 2,333 rose, 268 fell and 163 were flat on the final-day measure; trading value was about ₩55.0 trillion versus a ₩41.8 trillion average. The won strengthened 6.5% to 1441.1 per dollar and the 3-year KTB yield was 3.758%, up 5.5 basis points.

KOSPIDaily closes · shaded: this wrap6,595.45
6,0008,000
Dec 23Mar 11May 20Jul 31
KOSDAQDaily closes · shaded: this wrap719.76
8001,0001,200
Dec 23Mar 11May 20Jul 31

2,333 stocks rose, 268 fell · trading value ₩55T

USD/KRW1,441.1−6.5%
KTB 3y3.76+6bp

Themes investors follow

Most themes fell. Hydrogen fell 33.5%, chip testing and packaging 30.1%, HBM and AI chips 29.4%, self-driving 27.7%, ADC and cancer drugs 22.2%, space and aerospace 21.3% and semiconductor equipment 20.9%. Battery materials fell 18.6%, AI power and transformers 18.5%, EV batteries 17.2%, robots 14.2%, power grid and cables 13.5%, K-defense 11.0% and shipbuilding 8.7%. Gainers were shipping and logistics (+8.4%), K-beauty (+4.3%), oil, refining and chemicals (+4.0%), LNG and gas (+3.6%) and tires (+3.1%). Within them STX Green Logis rose 64.4%, Hyosung Chemical 46.6%, S-Oil 19.7%, Amorepacific 23.0% and LG H&H 25.0%. Kumho Tire rose 49.3% on hopes tied to its Gwangju plant near the planned Honam semiconductor cluster.

Popular themes

Best themes

  • Shipping & logistics+8.4%STX Green Logis +64.4% · Panstar Enterprise +23.4% · HAN Express +19.6%
  • K-beauty+4.3%J2KBIO +26.2% · LG H&H +25.0% · Amorepacific +23.0%
  • Oil, refining & chemicals+4.0%Hyosung Chemical +46.6% · S-Oil +19.7% · SH Energy & Chemical +16.6%
  • LNG & gas+3.6%E1 +10.7% · Korea Gas +7.8% · Kyungdong City Gas +7.8%
  • Tires+3.1%Kumho Tire +49.3% · Hankook Tire & Technology +9.2% · Hankook & Company +5.3%
  • Games+2.5%Com2uS N +47.0% · Thumbage +42.2% · Com2us +13.6%

Worst themes

  • Hydrogen−33.5%Doosan Fuel Cell −56.2% · Bumhan Fuel Cell −41.5% · Doosan Fuel Cell Pref. −35.5%
  • Chip testing & packaging−30.1%Mirae −45.1% · Doosan Tesna −44.9% · Simmtech −44.2%
  • HBM & AI chips−29.4%HVM −39.6% · SK hynix −35.2% · Atlas Link −34.6%
  • Self-driving−27.7%StradVision −64.6% · Nextchip −32.6% · HL Mando −8.8%
  • ADC & cancer drugs−22.2%LigaChem Biosciences −41.6% · ABL Bio −32.9% · HLB Therapeutics −28.3%
  • Space & aerospace−21.3%Nara Space Technology −36.5% · Innospace −31.9% · Kencoa Aerospace −30.0%

The biggest companies

Samsung Electronics fell 21.4% (market value about ₩1,534.6 trillion) and SK hynix fell 35.2% (about ₩1,255.0 trillion). Sources note Samsung reported second-quarter operating profit of ₩89.4 trillion on July 7, yet shares still fell, and SK hynix results missed expectations. SK Square fell 38.8%, Samsung Electro-Mechanics 47.7%, Hyundai Motor 21.6%, LG Energy Solution 9.4%, Samsung Life 22.3%, Samsung C&T 25.0%, HD Hyundai Heavy 18.7% and Hanwha Aerospace 7.8%, KIA 4.4%. Rising were Samsung Biologics (+6.8%), KB Financial (+6.0%), Shinhan Financial (+5.1%) and Celltrion (+7.7%).

Who was buying and selling

Foreign investors net sold about ₩9.9 trillion on the KOSPI and bought about ₩79 billion on KOSDAQ. They sold SK hynix (about ₩7.0 trillion) and Samsung Electronics (about ₩6.0 trillion), and bought LG Innotek (about ₩805.7 billion), Samsung Electronics Pref. and Hanmi Semiconductor. A source said foreigners bought ₩7.2 trillion of the KOSPI in the rebound while retail sold a record ₩8.3 trillion. Retail bought SK hynix (about ₩9.0 trillion) and Samsung Electronics (about ₩5.0 trillion) over the month. Institutions bought Samsung Electronics (about ₩988.3 billion), KB Financial and Isupetasys, and sold SK hynix (about ₩2.6 trillion) and Samsung Electro-Mechanics.

Foreign investors

Net bought

  1. 1LG Innotek+₩806B−47.6%
  2. 2Samsung Electronics Pref.+₩409B−9.9%
  3. 3Hanmi Semiconductor+₩375B−16.4%
  4. 4DB HiTek+₩348B−42.4%
  5. 5Leeno Industrial+₩310B−23.7%
  6. 6ISC+₩240B−28.6%
  7. 7Hyundai-Rotem+₩240B−22.7%
  8. 8Hyundai Motor+₩239B−21.6%
  9. 9Mirae Asset Securities+₩221B−19.2%
  10. 10Hyundai Mobis+₩214B−4.8%
  11. 11Shinsegae+₩187B−44.0%
  12. 12KIA+₩183B−4.4%
  13. 13Samsung Life Insurance+₩181B−22.3%
  14. 14EO Technics+₩165B−37.8%
  15. 15Samsung C&T+₩143B−25.0%

Net sold

  1. 1SK hynix−₩7T−35.2%
  2. 2Samsung Electronics−₩6T−21.4%
  3. 3KB Financial Group−₩493B+6.0%
  4. 4Isupetasys−₩375B−35.4%
  5. 5SK Telecom−₩313B−7.9%
  6. 6Hanwha Ocean−₩208B−15.1%
  7. 7Korea Aerospace Industries−₩193B−13.0%
  8. 8DB Insurance−₩171B+17.3%
  9. 9Rainbow Robotics−₩150B−16.6%
  10. 10PSK−₩147B−33.9%
  11. 11Wonik IPS−₩141B−41.9%
  12. 12OCI Holdings−₩139B−11.3%
  13. 13Hanwha Solutions−₩133B−24.9%
  14. 14PharmaResearch−₩132B−6.7%
  15. 15LS−₩129B−26.9%

Institutions

Net bought

  1. 1Samsung Electronics+₩988B−21.4%
  2. 2KB Financial Group+₩665B+6.0%
  3. 3Isupetasys+₩505B−35.4%
  4. 4SK Innovation+₩458B+16.4%
  5. 5SK Telecom+₩367B−7.9%
  6. 6Celltrion+₩364B+7.7%
  7. 7Samsung Biologics+₩353B+6.8%
  8. 8Samsung Electronics Pref.+₩352B−9.9%
  9. 9Jusung Engineering+₩335B−38.1%
  10. 10PharmaResearch+₩301B−6.7%
  11. 11S-Oil+₩298B+19.7%
  12. 12NAVER+₩275B+4.5%
  13. 13Hana Financial Group+₩231B+9.4%
  14. 14Korea Aerospace Industries+₩228B−13.0%
  15. 15Shinhan Financial Group+₩226B+5.1%

Net sold

  1. 1SK hynix−₩2.6T−35.2%
  2. 2Samsung Electro-Mechanics−₩917B−47.7%
  3. 3LG Innotek−₩740B−47.6%
  4. 4Hanmi Semiconductor−₩326B−16.4%
  5. 5DB HiTek−₩321B−42.4%
  6. 6Leeno Industrial−₩309B−23.7%
  7. 7HPSP−₩286B−35.9%
  8. 8EO Technics−₩227B−37.8%
  9. 9ISC−₩218B−28.6%
  10. 10Hyundai-Rotem−₩202B−22.7%
  11. 11Shinsegae−₩140B−44.0%
  12. 12Hyundai Department Store−₩125B−38.7%
  13. 13Hyosung Heavy Industries−₩119B−29.7%
  14. 14Soulbrain−₩103B−30.9%
  15. 15Samsung Life Insurance−₩88B−22.3%

Retail investors

Net bought

  1. 1SK hynix+₩9T−35.2%
  2. 2Samsung Electronics+₩5T−21.4%
  3. 3Samsung Electro-Mechanics+₩806B−47.7%
  4. 4HPSP+₩224B−35.9%
  5. 5Hanwha Ocean+₩203B−15.1%
  6. 6Hanwha Solutions+₩153B−24.9%
  7. 7Wonik IPS+₩146B−41.9%
  8. 8LS Electric+₩127B−22.4%
  9. 9Rainbow Robotics+₩125B−16.6%
  10. 10LG Display+₩94B−20.1%
  11. 11SAM Chun Dang Pharm+₩88B−33.8%
  12. 12OCI Holdings+₩66B−11.3%
  13. 13Hyundai Motor 2nd Pref.+₩61B−6.7%
  14. 14Taihan Cable & Solution+₩59B−31.6%
  15. 15Peptron+₩59B−30.7%

Net sold

  1. 1Samsung Electronics Pref.−₩773B−9.9%
  2. 2Celltrion−₩427B+7.7%
  3. 3Samsung Biologics−₩362B+6.8%
  4. 4Hyundai Mobis−₩322B−4.8%
  5. 5NAVER−₩311B+4.5%
  6. 6Hyundai Motor−₩309B−21.6%
  7. 7SK Innovation−₩294B+16.4%
  8. 8S-Oil−₩284B+19.7%
  9. 9LG Electronics−₩243B−20.2%
  10. 10Jusung Engineering−₩239B−38.1%
  11. 11KIA−₩219B−4.4%
  12. 12SK Square−₩205B−38.8%
  13. 13Kakao−₩197B+8.2%
  14. 14Meritz Financial Group−₩190B+17.5%
  15. 15Amorepacific−₩182B+23.0%

ETFs

KODEX WTI Crude Oil Futures (H) rose 17.6%, the best ETF, followed by bank and high-dividend funds: KODEX Banks (+7.0%), TIGER Banks (+6.9%) and SOL Financial Holdings Plus High Dividend (+6.1%). The worst were semiconductor and space funds, with SOL AI Semiconductor TOP2 Plus down 38.2% and KODEX US Space Aerospace down 37.8%. A source said an SK hynix single-stock leveraged ETF fell 67%. Money held up in banks, dividends and oil while chip funds fell.

Best ETFs

Worst ETFs

Leveraged and inverse ETFs are left out; moves are the daily moves compounded.

How our signals did

There were no Squeeze! setups in July. Of 40 technical events, 17 worked. Xi S&D's long golden cross on July 21 was followed by a 52.2% gain, and Korea Aerospace Industries' breakdown on July 29 was followed by a 9.9% fall. Samsung Biologics' golden cross on July 24 was followed by a 10.3% decline. Short squeeze scores were highest at 60 for Meritz Financial Group, Hanssem and ISU Specialty Chemical, followed by SM Entertainment at 58 and KMW at 58. No pair trades were flagged.

Notable technical signals

40 notable signals: 17 moved the way they pointed so far.

Highest short squeeze scores

Signals describe past prices. Results run from the signal to the latest close; they are not recommendations.

Written by AI from JONBUR's data and checked against those figures. Index and stock moves are the daily moves compounded over the period. Reasons come only from the linked daily wraps, news, filings and broker reports; when none gives a reason, we say so. Not financial advice.

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