Data released by the Korea Exchange on Sunday show outstanding short positions
in Korean equities at about KRW19 tln (roughly $13.4bn) as of Tuesday, up
KRW2.27 tln (14%) from KRW16.73 tln at end-May. Short balances were KRW15 tln at
end-February, briefly fell to KRW12 tln in early March and climbed to KRW23 tln
in early June. The KOSPI is up about 6% month-to-date and the tech-heavy KOSDAQ
has jumped roughly 20% this month after last month’s AI- and chip-driven
sell-off, but investors remain wary the rally is too rapid and uncertain whether
the chip cycle has peaked.
