KOSPI closes 0.62% higher at 5,683.80 after volatile US election session
Published on 11/04/2026 at 13:25 | Editorial responsibility: Rafael Müller, Editor-in-Chief AD HOC NEWSKOSPI recovers after sharp election swings
- The KOSPI closed at 5,683.80 on November 4, 2026, up 35.01 points or 0.62 percent.
- The index moved from an early gain of 3.17 percent to an intraday loss of 4.02 percent before recovering.
- Battery stocks gained on expectations of stronger renewable-energy and electric-vehicle support, while semiconductor shares remained under pressure.
- Foreign investors sold a net 2.5 trillion won, partly offset by purchases from institutions and individual investors.
The KOSPI closed at 5,683.80 on November 4, 2026, gaining 35.01 points or 0.62 percent. The Korea Composite Stock Price Index initially rose sharply after overnight gains in US semiconductor shares, but reversed course as investors assessed the implications of the US midterm elections. Yonhap News Agency reported that the regular Seoul session ended higher after swinging between gains and losses.
Election uncertainty drove a wide trading range
The index opened at 5,786.13, up 2.43 percent, and reached an early high of 5,828.13, a gain of 3.17 percent. It then fell as low as 5,421.72, equivalent to a 4.02 percent decline from the previous close, before recovering in the afternoon. The move reflected changing expectations as vote counting pointed to Democratic control of both chambers of the US Congress.
According to Reuters, concerns that tighter scrutiny of artificial-intelligence investment could slow demand initially weighed on technology shares. Later in the session, expectations that Democratic climate policies could support electric-vehicle demand helped battery-related shares rally. LG Energy Solution rose 5.03 percent and Samsung SDI gained 11.57 percent, while Samsung Electronics fell 0.68 percent and SK hynix declined 0.14 percent.
Foreign selling capped the recovery
Foreign investors sold a net 2.5 trillion won of Korean shares, according to Yonhap, while institutions bought 1.01 trillion won and individual investors purchased 1.15 trillion won. The buying from domestic investors helped the index recover from its intraday low, but the flow imbalance underscored the market's sensitivity to global technology and policy expectations.
The Korea Times noted that analysts expect medium-term direction to depend less on the election result alone than on actual AI spending, semiconductor demand and foreign investor flows. For investors, the session demonstrated that the KOSPI's headline gain masked substantial cross-sector rotation and unusually high policy sensitivity.
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