Nasdaq +1.64%, S&P +1.05% — Risk-On: All Sectors Up — Dongchun Korea Preview 26/04/23

Hey, Dongchun here.

Today in 3 Lines
  • Nasdaq and S&P 500 hit simultaneous all-time highs as Trump extended Iran ceasefire indefinitely.
  • GE Vernova's data center power demand beat and Tesla's Q1 margin recovery drove tech and energy sectors.
  • KOSPI expected to gap up slightly; EV batteries and power infrastructure lead on April 23.

Previous post: Read it →

1. US Session Recap

US equities closed sharply higher on April 22 as risk sentiment surged after President Trump extended the US-Iran ceasefire on an open-ended basis, lifting the geopolitical risk premium that had weighed on markets for weeks. The S&P 500 gained 1.05% to close at a new all-time high of 7,137.90, while the Nasdaq Composite surged 1.64% to a record 24,657.57 — a historically significant dual-ATH session that typically signals a bull market broadening phase. The Dow Jones climbed 340.65 points (+0.69%) to 49,490.03, and the Russell 2000 rose 0.74% to 2,785.38, confirming the rally was broad-based rather than driven by only mega-cap names. Market breadth was healthy: the Russell 2000's participation alongside the Nasdaq is a key signal that small-cap sentiment is recovering. VIX closed at 19.50, elevated but well below panic levels, indicating controlled optimism rather than euphoria. GE Vernova's 8–12% surge on a data center power demand beat confirmed that AI infrastructure spending is accelerating through the earnings season. The Nasdaq new high is the most direct positive signal for Korean technology and semiconductor names, which had lagged the US semi rally on the prior Korean session.

IndexCloseChange
S&P 5007,137.90+1.05%
Nasdaq24,657.57+1.64%
Dow Jones49,490.03+0.69%
Russell 20002,785.38+0.74%

2. Korea Market Snapshot

KOSPI closed at a fresh record high of 6,417.93 on April 22, gaining 0.46%, despite Samsung Electronics (-0.68%) and SK Hynix (-0.08%) trading lower on the day. The divergence between index strength and semiconductor weakness reflects a rotation dynamic: retail investors led the advance with a remarkable 1.78 trillion KRW in net buying, while LG Energy Solution (+1.36%) led the benchmark as the primary vehicle for institutional and foreign accumulation. Foreign investors were initially sellers on the main board but switched to net buying on the KOSDAQ in afternoon trade, adding 96.8 billion KRW — a meaningful sign of improving global risk appetite filtering into Korean small caps. For the April 23 open, the critical first-30-minute indicator is foreign net flow on Samsung Electronics; if foreigners turn net buyers on Samsung, KOSPI has a clear path toward 6,450. USD/KRW eased to 1,479.36 (-0.23%), a slight won strengthening that is modestly positive for foreign equity inflows.

Table 1 — Korea index snapshot:

IndexPrev CloseChangeKey Level
KOSPI6,417.93+0.46%Support: 6,380 / Resistance: 6,450
KOSDAQN/A (unconfirmed)-Watch foreign flow direction

Table 2 — Investor flow (April 22 session):

InvestorNet Buy/SellTrend
Retail+1,779.8B KRWStrong buying, led the index
Foreigners (KOSDAQ)+96.8B KRWSwitched to net buy in afternoon
InstitutionsUnconfirmed-

3. Korea Sector Breakdown

US technology led all sectors on April 22, with the Nasdaq's 1.64% gain to a new all-time high signaling sustained AI-driven momentum. Energy and power infrastructure surged on GE Vernova's Q1 earnings beat — the company cited explosive data center demand as its primary revenue driver, growing total revenues 16% year-over-year and delivering $9.34B versus the $9.25B estimate. Semiconductor stocks held near all-time highs with the SOX resilient; storage names Seagate (+3%) and Western Digital (+3%) led as memory demand recovery expectations strengthened. Nuclear and SMR stocks continued a week-long explosive run following the White House space nuclear executive order, which mandated orbital reactors by 2028 and lunar reactors by 2030. Crypto-linked stocks recovered sharply from the prior day's NY AG lawsuit selloff, with Coinbase (+5.25%) leading the reversal on a 14-day positive Coinbase premium streak.

SectorUS SessionKorea ImplicationWatch
Semiconductors▲ StrongSamsung, SK Hynix potential bounceSOX continuation
AI / Tech▲ ATHNAVER AI services re-ratingNasdaq follow-through
Power / Energy Infra▲ Very Strong효성중공업, HD현대일렉트릭 gap-up potentialGEV follow-through
EV / Battery▲ Strong (Tesla beat)LG Energy, Samsung SDI, POSCO Future MTesla capex guidance read-through
Nuclear / SMR▲ Very StrongKorean nuclear policy stocksWhite House space program timeline
Crypto / Fintech▲ StrongKakao Pay, domestic crypto namesCOIN premium signal
Biotech / Pharma▼ SlightNo direct Korea play from NVO weakness—

4. Stocks on My Radar

TickerPriceSession %Key Event
BMNR$23.31+7.37%Tom Lee approaching 5% ownership threshold; total crypto+cash holdings $12.9B
NVO$39.15-0.68%No specific catalyst; drift lower; OpenAI drug discovery partnership from earlier in month
ZETA$18.16+1.97%Q1 earnings due April 30; 94% of covering analysts rate Buy; consensus target $28.92
ORCL$187.50+3.49%Expanded Google/Gemini Enterprise AI data partnership announced
SMR$13.57+16.28%White House mandates space nuclear reactors by 2028, lunar by 2030; NuScale is the only NRC-certified SMR developer
COIN$206.24+5.25%Bounce from prior day -7% NY AG lawsuit drop; Coinbase premium positive for 14 consecutive days
LAES$3.06+3.38%SEALCOIN Hedera network infrastructure announced; Q1 revenue $4.1M (+215% YoY); $525M+ cash position
ASTS$84.66+5.81%BlueBird 7 deployed into unusable orbit (de-orbiting); offset by FCC approval for 248-satellite constellation; satellite insured

BMNR (+7.37%) is moving on a specific institutional catalyst: Tom Lee of Fundstrat is approaching the 5% ownership level that triggers a mandatory 13D filing, historically a signal of conviction accumulation. Bitmine's ETH treasury (4.97M tokens, 4.12% of total supply) and $12.9B total holdings make it a pure-play proxy for institutional ETH conviction. SMR's +16.28% extends a +40% weekly run driven by the White House space nuclear executive order; NuScale holds a unique regulatory moat as the only NRC design-certified SMR developer in the US, a distinction that cannot be replicated quickly by competitors. ASTS had a dramatic intraday reversal: the BlueBird 7 satellite was deployed into an off-nominal orbit too low for sustained operations by Blue Origin's New Glenn rocket, erasing roughly $2B in market cap at the open, but a same-day FCC approval to deploy up to 248 satellites shifted investor focus from one failed deployment to the long-term constellation build-out, and the stock recovered to close +5.81%.

5. Today's Trade Setup

The KOSPI is expected to open slightly higher on April 23, with a gap of approximately +0.2% to +0.5%, reflecting the simultaneous Nasdaq and S&P 500 all-time high close. The critical first-30-minute indicator to watch is Samsung Electronics' net foreign flow: if foreigners are net buyers of Samsung in the opening session, KOSPI has a clear path toward 6,450–6,480; if they sell, the index could give back the gap and test 6,380 support. The top two Korean sectors to focus on are (1) EV batteries — LG Energy Solution, Samsung SDI, and POSCO Future M should benefit from Tesla's Q1 margin recovery and improving EV demand sentiment, building on LG Energy Solution's +1.36% outperformance from the prior session; and (2) power infrastructure — 효성중공업 and HD현대일렉트릭 could see continued interest following GE Vernova's explosive data center power demand beat, which is a direct analogue for Korean grid equipment exporters. Bull scenario: foreigners turn net buyers in both semiconductors and batteries, KOSPI tests 6,460–6,480, KODEX Semiconductor ETF outperforms; target KOSPI 6,480. Bear scenario: Tesla post-earnings conference call disappoints on capex or robotaxi timeline, causing Nasdaq futures to decline before the Korean open; KOSPI gaps lower and Samsung tests 215,000 KRW support; KOSPI risk level 6,360. One underappreciated risk is the Brent-WTI spread: Brent remains above $98 despite WTI easing to $89, meaning refinery-exposed plays (S-Oil, GS Caltex) face continued margin compression. Base case: KOSPI 6,420–6,450 with battery and power infrastructure leadership, semiconductors attempting a modest recovery from the prior day's underperformance.

Bottom line: KOSPI base case gap-up to 6,420–6,450; key signal is foreign net flow on Samsung Electronics in the first 30 minutes of trading.

That's the AM breakdown for April 23. Trade safe.

Sources

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