The KOSPI fell sharply in early trade, triggering a sidecar on the KOSPI market that temporarily halts the effectiveness of program sell orders.
The Korea Exchange said program sell orders were suspended for 5 minutes at 9:06:02 a.m. on Aug. 19 after a sharp drop in the KOSPI 200 futures index.
At the time, the KOSPI 200 futures index fell 65.00 points, or 6.02 percent, from the previous session to 1,013.26.
The KOSPI was down 5.78 percent from the previous session at 9:09 a.m. at 6,472.61, before widening losses to the 6 percent range. The Kosdaq fell 2.46 percent at the same time.
Samsung Electronics fell 6.89 percent to 250,000 won, while SK Hynix slid 8.36 percent to 1,523,000 won.
Han Ji-young (한지영), an analyst at Kiwoom Securities, said in a pre-market report, "Major countries' long-term yields rose today, U.S. semiconductor stocks weakened and KOSPI 200 night futures fell in the 4 percent range, so the market is expected to open lower."
Ji-young Lee
ljy@d-today.co.kr