Seoul — July 24, 2026. Published after the market close; prices are official closing values.
The 30-second version
- The KOSPI plunged 5.72% to 6,690.62 and the KOSDAQ fell 5.32% to 748.22, erasing yesterday’s 4.40% rally. Sell-side sidecars — temporary halts on program sell orders — were triggered on both markets.
- Three shocks hit at once: a new US tariff regime that puts a 12.5% levy on Korea, Middle East escalation that pushed Brent crude above $100, and an overnight Wall Street slide (NASDAQ -2.15%).
- Foreign investors dumped about 3.28 trillion won (~$2.2 billion) of KOSPI shares and institutions sold 1.95 trillion won; retail investors bought 5.18 trillion won against the tide.
- Chips and autos led the damage: SK hynix -8.34%, Samsung Electronics -7.59%, Kia -12.88% after earnings. Samsung Biologics bucked the rout, surging 10.08% on record results.
Three shocks landed at once
Days like this rarely have a single cause, and today had three. First, Washington announced new tariffs on 60 countries, citing forced-labor grounds, with Korea assigned a 12.5% rate — a direct hit to an export-driven market. Second, Middle East tensions pushed Brent crude above $100 per barrel according to local reports (the WTI feed in our data actually eased 1.81% to $90.52 today, a divergence worth noting). Third, Wall Street set a grim table overnight: the S&P 500 lost 1.21% and the NASDAQ 2.15% in the previous US session on AI-spending worries and the oil spike.
The selling was heavy enough to trigger sell sidecars on both the KOSPI and KOSDAQ. A sidecar is Korea’s lighter-touch cousin of the circuit breaker: when futures fall sharply, program sell orders — the automated baskets that can accelerate a decline — are paused for a few minutes. Trading in individual shares continues; only the algorithmic firehose is briefly capped. A full circuit breaker, by contrast, halts everything.
Context matters here: July has been a whipsaw month. The KOSPI dropped 8.95% on July 13, jumped 6.24% on July 15, fell 6.37% the next day, lost 4.46% on July 20, then rallied 4.40% yesterday before today’s 5.72% slide. That is six sessions with moves of 4% or more in three weeks — a level of index volatility that turns every headline into a swing trade.
Foreigners flipped from buying to dumping — in one day
Today’s KOSPI flows tell the story: foreign investors sold a net 3.28 trillion won (~$2.2 billion at today’s rate near 1,465 won per dollar), institutions sold 1.95 trillion won (~$1.3 billion), and individual investors bought a remarkable 5.18 trillion won (~$3.5 billion), effectively catching the falling market alone.
What makes the reversal striking is how fresh the optimism was. In the previous session (July 23), foreigners were net buyers of 2.14 trillion won across KOSPI and KOSDAQ combined, capping a five-day buying streak of 4.21 trillion won. The iShares MSCI South Korea ETF (EWY) even gained 2.01% in the prior US session — an overnight sentiment proxy from a different trading day that had already gone stale by the Seoul open.
Retail firepower is not exhausted, though. Investor deposits — cash sitting in brokerage accounts waiting to be deployed — stood at 103.9 trillion won (~$71 billion) as of July 22, with margin loans at 33.0 trillion won (~$22.5 billion). The won, for its part, actually strengthened slightly, with the global 24-hour feed showing 1,464.68 per dollar (down 0.74%); local reports put the Seoul close near 1,466.6, so the two readings differ marginally.
Chips and autos led down; biopharma was the exception
Using KODEX sector-ETF proxies (which can deviate slightly from official sector indices), semiconductors fell 8.52% and autos 8.46% — the two worst of eight tracked sectors, none of which advanced. Samsung Electronics lost 7.59%, SK hynix 8.34%, and equipment maker Hanmi Semiconductor 7.41%.
The auto rout had an earnings kicker: Hyundai Motor reported second-quarter operating profit down 21% year-on-year and fell 7.18%, while Kia’s profit slipped 4.9% and the stock cratered 12.88% — the day’s worst among large caps.
The green shoots were almost all biopharma. Samsung Biologics soared 10.08% after posting record quarterly results: revenue of 1.32 trillion won and operating profit of 586.4 billion won. Celltrion rose 3.14% after filing phase 3 clinical trial applications for its subcutaneous CT-P13 (Zymfentra) in rheumatoid arthritis in Korea, the US and Europe — see the official US-trial disclosure on DART. Elsewhere, Krafton added 2.11%, Shinhan Financial eked out a 0.58% gain, and the banks sector proxy was nearly flat at -0.16% — defensive pockets in an otherwise red tape.
Key closing numbers
| Item | Close | Change |
|---|---|---|
| KOSPI | 6,690.62 | -5.72% |
| KOSDAQ | 748.22 | -5.32% |
| USD/KRW (global 24h feed) | 1,464.68 | -0.74% |
| Samsung Electronics | KRW 249,500 | -7.59% |
| SK hynix | KRW 1,759,000 | -8.34% |
| Samsung Biologics | KRW 1,518,000 | +10.08% |
| Kia | KRW 130,500 | -12.88% |
| VIX | 18.97 | +1.44% |
| WTI crude | $90.52 | -1.81% |
What to watch next
- Whether Brent holds above $100 — energy costs are a direct margin squeeze for Korean manufacturers.
- Any follow-up detail or negotiation on the 12.5% US tariff rate applied to Korea under the new 60-country regime.
- Whether today’s foreign selling was a one-day risk-off spasm or the end of the recent five-day, 4.21-trillion-won buying streak.
- The won around the mid-1,460s per dollar, a key sentiment gauge for foreign investors.
- More second-quarter earnings: LG pre-announced its results-disclosure schedule today, and Doosan Robotics and Doosan Fuel Cell filed preliminary Q2 numbers.
FAQ
Why did the Korean stock market crash on July 24, 2026?
Three overlapping shocks: new US tariffs (12.5% on Korea, part of a 60-country action citing forced labor), a Middle East-driven oil spike that sent Brent above $100, and an overnight Wall Street selloff led by tech. The KOSPI fell 5.72% and the KOSDAQ 5.32%.
What is a sidecar in the Korean stock market?
A sidecar is a temporary pause on program-trading sell orders, triggered when futures fall sharply. It is milder than a circuit breaker, which halts all trading — think of it as capping the automated selling while human orders keep flowing. Both KOSPI and KOSDAQ triggered sell sidecars today.
Did foreign investors sell Korean stocks today?
Yes — roughly 3.28 trillion won (~$2.2 billion) of net KOSPI selling, a sharp reversal from the previous session, when foreigners were net buyers of 2.14 trillion won across both markets combined.
Which Korean stocks rose during the selloff?
Samsung Biologics jumped 10.08% on record Q2 earnings, Celltrion gained 3.14% on phase 3 trial filings for Zymfentra, Krafton rose 2.11%, and Shinhan Financial added 0.58%.
Disclaimer: This is an information and analysis publication, not investment advice. See our Methodology for data sources, standards, and our corrections policy.