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KOSPI Slides Below 5,000 as Tech Rout Fuels Heavy Selling and Won Weakness

U.S. tech losses sharpened AI profit doubts, driving foreign selling that weakened the won.

In this photo provided by the Korea Exchange (KRX) on Feb. 3, 2026, Jeong Eun-bo, the chairman of the KRX, speaks during an event to celebrate the benchmark Korean Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI)'s landing above 5,000 points, at the bourse operator's building in Seoul. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)
This photo taken on Feb. 6, 2026, shows the dealing room of Hana Bank in central Seoul. (Yonhap)
A dealing room at Hana Bank in central Seoul on Feb. 5, 2026 (Yonhap)
This photo taken Feb. 6, 2026, shows the dealing room of Hana Bank in central Seoul. (Yonhap)

Overview

  • The index opened down 4.8% to 4,917 on Feb. 6, briefly touched about 4,899, then rebounded to close at 5,089, down 1.44% on the day.
  • A sell-side sidecar halted program trading six minutes into Friday’s session after Kospi 200 futures swung more than 5%, following opposite-direction halts earlier in the week.
  • Foreign investors offloaded a net 3.3 trillion won on Feb. 6 after a record 5 trillion won net sale the day before, while retail investors were net buyers and institutions bought about 960 billion won.
  • The Korean won weakened to roughly 1,474 per U.S. dollar in morning trade and was quoted near 1,469 late afternoon as outflows and risk-off sentiment persisted.
  • The Korea Exchange outlined reforms, starting pre- and after-hours trading in June with a path toward weekday 24-hour trading, plus new leveraged ETFs and weekly options, tighter delisting rules, and AI-driven market surveillance.