SK hynix shares move sideways under foreign investors' deliberate pressure, individual investor exits deepen

A price correction allows traders to aim for a rebound after a sharp drop, but a time-based correction in which the stock simply moves sideways offers few opportunities to trade.

This places investors in a position of having to wait a long time without a clear direction in the share price, creating a heavy psychological burden.

In response, CEO Kim Min-su said a low P/E does not necessarily mean the market will rise, and dismissed the idea that P/E is working as a signal in the current market.

This suggests market movement is being determined by complex factors that simple fundamental indicators cannot fully explain.

CEO Kim Min-su said there is noise in the chip industry at present, but one cannot conclude that industry conditions have broken down. He stressed that semiconductors are a foundational industry for the economy, and there is insufficient evidence to judge that the chip cycle is over right now.

He presented the view that, despite temporary market turbulence, the fundamental growth drivers of the semiconductor industry remain intact.

CEO Kim Min-su assessed that the market's current sideways movement is in fact more frightening. A range-bound market makes the direction hard to predict, and he explained that nobody can know how it will move next, making uncertainty very high.

This uncertainty makes it difficult for investors to make decisions and acts as a factor that wears them down psychologically.

He said he has made this point many times this week, and that investors are growing exhausted by the continued suppression by foreigners.

This pattern shows the possibility of market distortion that cannot be explained by fundamentals or the value of individual companies alone.

A volatility index climbing to 98 is an unusual phenomenon, and he explained it resembles the sharp volatility that appeared after single-stock leverage in the past.

However, when the market moves sideways, volatility tends to fall sharply, and he interpreted that the market is now going through a process of tempering, with volatility being driven down.

In other words, a prolonged sideways market is a period of gathering latent energy, and his analysis is that once the compressed energy is released, it will determine the larger direction.

This suggests the current tedious market may be a preparatory stage for a larger move ahead.

CEO Kim Min-su said that when a sideways market wears people down and panic selling emerges, this could in fact be a turning point for a fresh start. He advised that rather than being discouraged when investors are struggling and prices fall, they should keep in mind that such a pullback may be part of a process for prices to break out.

This emphasizes that a market decline is not necessarily a negative signal, and may instead offer an opportunity for a strong rebound.

He analyzed that a market that somehow dampens volatility and settles at a specific level could mark an important turning point.

Accordingly, whether the 2,600 level holds is likely to be an important benchmark for judging whether the current tedious correction will end.

To prepare for this, he said it is important to secure cash, citing recent leadership moves across various sectors such as biotech, secondary batteries, and cosmetics as examples.

Many chip investors have taken losses and moved into KOSDAQ stocks recently, but he warned that this is a risky move that breaks down one's portfolio.

He stressed that the basic strength of the semiconductor industry remains intact, and that abandoning leading stocks in response to temporary market conditions is not advisable.

While it was commendable for some investors to recover their losses, he warned that whether this will continue to be the trend is uncertain.

His message is that it is very difficult for ordinary investors to consistently profit from short-term KOSDAQ trading, and that a cautious approach is needed.

Even when the market is dull, he advised staying sharp and remaining open to the possibility of change.

This means investors must always be ready to respond to the market with a flexible stance.

CEO Kim Min-su noted that the current sideways market is a phenomenon that has appeared for the first time in about a year. In the past, when prices pulled back for three or four days, a rebound followed, but this time prices kept sliding lower, and he pointed out that this is a movement that fundamentals alone cannot explain.

This suggests that the current market is being heavily influenced by psychological and supply-demand factors beyond basic economic indicators or corporate earnings.

He stressed that when checking supply and demand, stock futures matter more than the spot market, and explained that the market can only turn once stock futures turn.

In particular, this pattern seen from June to early August shows that foreign investors' stock futures selling is acting as a key factor determining the market's direction.

By steadily selling stock futures, foreign investors are applying downward pressure on the market, and this is becoming a major cause of deepening sideways and downward movement in SK hynix shares.

This suggests SK hynix shares are not following the market's normal flow and are being driven by specific downward pressure.

In other words, the stock is unable to rise above a certain high, and downward pressure continues.

This phenomenon is linked to foreign investors' deliberate suppression of the market and is acting as a major obstacle to SK hynix's recovery.

He explained that if someone invests 100 million won and is force-liquidated on margin, only 30 to 40 percent remains, and recovering that can take months or even years, causing them to lose the will to invest.

He added that people often start out studying hard and watching YouTube to invest, but repeated losses eventually drain all motivation and push many to leave the market.

He said it should become widely accepted that companies that earn a lot of money should naturally return it to shareholders, and that securing timeliness in policy announcements is important for restoring investor trust.

He explained that Micron is also at a stage of gathering energy and a directional move is likely to emerge soon.

He analyzed that if Micron rises and sends a positive signal to the Korean market, Korean chip stocks are likely to follow. He added that Micron is currently above an important support zone, which differs from Korean chip shares, but that it has enough strength to settle higher once trading volume erupts.