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Korean chip buybacks on track to end about a month early

Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix have already completed roughly 80% of their combined buybacks, which could leave the Kospi less supported by mid-October.

Reported · Written up by our desk · Asia

South Korean stocks are set to lose a major source of support earlier than expected, just as the market has struggled to advance decisively, LiveMint Markets reported. Samsung Electronics Co. and SK Hynix Inc. said in late August they would buy back a combined 55 trillion won of their own shares, with the plan expected to end around the second half of November. Bloomberg calculations based on exchange data cited by LiveMint Markets show the chipmakers have already completed about 80% of the buybacks. At the current pace, the buying could finish by mid-October, around a month ahead of the original schedule. LiveMint Markets said the accelerated purchases have helped provide demand for the benchmark Kospi index while trading volume has thinned and few other large buyers have stepped in. The earlier-than-expected end also risks making the Kospi more dependent on a rebound in foreign and institutional flows to move sustainably above the 7,000 level that has held since late July. An analyst at SK Securities, Cho Junkee, said the faster-than-expected buyback pace could exhaust by mid- or end-October, according to LiveMint Markets.

Latest closeKospi 6,883.05 ▼2.8%

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