Eben@CANSLIM ResearchGoldman Sachs reports that the KOSPI rebounded 3.3% in the week covered by its Korea Weekly Kickstart, led by industrials and a stronger won ahead of the FOMC. The bank’s latest retail activity pulse check shows domestic retail participation softening, with corporate buybacks — not retail flows — now the main support for Korean equity market inflows. The Korea Equity Risk Barometer sits at 0.0, in risk-neutral territory.
Key Takeaways
- The KOSPI rose 3.3% over the week, with Construction, Machinery and Shipbuilding outperforming and F&B, Pharmaceutical and Software lagging, according to Goldman Sachs’ Korea Weekly Kickstart.
- Foreign investors continued to sell Korean equities, driven by outflows from KOSPI Tech, while KOSPI 12-month forward EPS was revised down 0.3%.
- Korean retail investors have been selling both conventional and leveraged ETFs benchmarked to domestic equities since June, while accelerating purchases of US equities; they still hold close to US$190bn in US stocks.
- Corporate buybacks have driven Korean equity market inflows over the past four weeks, offsetting outflows from other investor groups as foreign and retail turnover weakened.
- The won strengthened 0.5% against the USD but weakened 1.4% versus the JPY and 0.1% against the EUR; the Korea Equity Risk Barometer (GSSRKERB Index) held at 0.0.
Lead Analysis: What Goldman Sachs’ Korea Weekly Kickstart Says
In a report titled “KOREA WEEKLY KICKSTART”, dated 11 September 2026, Goldman Sachs analysts Timothy Moe, CFA, and John Kwon of Goldman Sachs (Singapore) Pte present a weekly portfolio strategy update on Korean equities. The headline conclusion is that the KOSPI rebounded 3.3% amid industrials’ outperformance and a stronger won ahead of the FOMC, even as foreign investors kept selling the market.
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