[Alpha Biz= Paul Lee] SEOUL, October 29, 2025 — As the KOSPI index continues its record-breaking rally and investor enthusiasm surges, several South Korean brokerages have suffered system outages due to heavy trading traffic. Analysts say local securities firms’ IT infrastructure is struggling to keep pace with unprecedented retail trading volume, fueling investor frustration.


On Tuesday morning, Meritz Securities experienced a temporary disruption in both its Home Trading System (HTS) and Mobile Trading System (MTS), with users reporting severe lag and connection failures. The company posted a notice saying that “price updates for watchlists are not being processed properly,” before restoring normal operations around 10 a.m.


A similar incident occurred on October 27, when Korea Investment & Securities’ MTS malfunctioned at market open—the same day the KOSPI surpassed the 4,000 mark for the first time in history.


Fueled by strong institutional and retail demand, the KOSPI closed at 4,081.15 on Tuesday, up 1.76% from the previous session, extending its record-setting momentum. Investor deposit balances—a proxy for idle trading capital—reached ₩83.87 trillion, while margin loans climbed to ₩24.8 trillion, both marking year-to-date highs.


Optimism surrounding the APEC summit in Gyeongju and expectations of expanded U.S.–Korea cooperation boosted nuclear energy and semiconductor stocks. Shares of Samsung C&T and Doosan Enerbility jumped 11.59% and 11.57%, respectively, while SK hynix gained 7.10% after reporting record quarterly earnings.


Some market strategists now speculate that if momentum persists, the KOSPI could reach the 6,000 level within the next year, driven by global AI expansion, semiconductor tailwinds, and renewed foreign capital inflows.

 

 

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