Leveraged ETFs Fuel the Fire: Structural Risks in the South Korean Stock Market Exposed Amid Geopolitical Shocks

金十2026/03/16 02:08

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Golden Ten Data reported on March 16 that for a long time, the market has pointed out the risks of the Korean stock market's excessive reliance on the two chip giants, SK Hynix and Samsung. However, it was not until the Iran war triggered violent fluctuations in this nearly $4 trillion market that these risks truly attracted attention. As investors tried to interpret the causes of this sharp volatility, they noticed the growing influence of leveraged ETFs linked to SK Hynix and Samsung Electronics. These two stocks together account for nearly 40% of the KOSPI index's weight and half of the MSCI Korea index's weight, making their movements crucial to the overall market. Jung In Yun, CEO of Fibonacci Asset Management, stated that the rapid growth of leveraged ETFs tied to Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix is beginning to add a layer of structural volatility to the Korean market. Given their significant weight in the KOSPI index, this could create a feedback loop, amplifying index fluctuations and raising concerns about even more intense volatility during future periods of stress.

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路透社•2026/10/08 16:11