On the 19th, the domestic stock market showed a contrasting trend, with the KOSPI closing near the unchanged line while the KOSDAQ plunged more than 3%. Meanwhile, a day earlier on the 18th (local time), the U.S. New York stock market posted a strong rebound centered on technology stocks.

First, the U.S. New York stock market closed uniformly higher on the 18th (local time) as concerns over additional tightening partially eased following the Federal Reserve's (Fed) decision to freeze its benchmark interest rate. The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at 51,564.70, up 72.15 points (0.14%) from the previous trading day, and the Standard & Poor's (S&P) 500 index finished trading at 7,500.58, up 80.48 points (1.08%). In particular, as buying interest concentrated on large-cap technology stocks related to artificial intelligence (AI) and semiconductors, the tech-heavy NASDAQ Composite Index surged 496.28 points (1.91%) to 26,517.93. The Russell 2000 index, centered on small- and mid-cap stocks, also showed strength, rising 61.79 points (2.12%) to 2,979.77.

Despite the strength of the U.S. stock market, the domestic market exhibited a correction trend centered on the KOSDAQ, as burden from recent sharp gains overlapped with profit-taking sell-offs. According to the Korea Exchange, the KOSPI closed at 9,052.42 on the 19th, down 11.42 points (0.13%) from the previous trading day. Despite expanded intraday volatility, it defended the 9,000 level, showing a relatively stable trend. The KOSPI 50 index, centered on top market-cap stocks, recorded 11,358.85, up 55.34 points (0.49%), as semiconductors and some large-cap stocks defended the index.

Meanwhile, the KOSDAQ index closed at 966.59, down 34.34 points (3.43%). The expanded decline is analyzed to be due to profit-taking sell-offs centered on recently surging bio, robot, and AI-related stocks. The market believes that even after the Fed's rate freeze, uncertainty over the future direction of monetary policy remains, and the burden from short-term sharp gains has been reflected in the KOSDAQ market.

Going forward, the direction of global stock markets is expected to be determined by key variables such as upcoming U.S. inflation and employment data, as well as comments from Fed officials.

[This article was written with the assistance of AI. It is not an investment solicitation article and is for general information purposes. This publication bears no legal or financial responsibility for this article.]