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South Korea’s KOSPI fell 2.28% to 6,474.95 by 9:15 a.m. Korea time on Oct. 12, 2026, according to Yonhap News Agency. The decline was an intraday snapshot, not the closing result. Reports linked the market’s weakness to higher oil prices and renewed Middle East tensions, while technology shares and foreign selling added pressure.
How far had the KOSPI fallen?
The reported decline varied with the time of observation. The figures below are separate morning snapshots, not conflicting closing figures.
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| Source and observation time | KOSPI level | Change |
|---|---|---|
| The Economic Times, 0157 GMT on Oct. 12 | 6,511.13 | Down 114.80 points, or 1.73% |
| Yonhap News Agency, 9:15 a.m. Korea time on Oct. 12 | 6,474.95 | Down 150.98 points, or 2.28% |
| Seoul Economic Daily, 9:58 a.m. Korea time on Oct. 12 | Not stated in the cited report | Down 2.33% |
The reports show the decline deepening across the morning snapshots. They do not establish the final level at the market close.
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1Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errors2Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minute3Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsWhy were South Korean shares under pressure?
Oil and geopolitical risk
Contemporaneous reports described higher oil prices and renewed Middle East tensions as key concerns for investors. Yonhap connected the oil-price rise to renewed Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia over the weekend and reported concern that a wider conflict could disrupt energy supplies, add to inflation, and increase pressure on the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates. Those are reported market concerns, not proof that any of those outcomes occurred or a forecast that a rate increase was certain. Yonhap’s report framed the risk as a possible chain from energy disruption to inflation and interest-rate pressure.
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Technology shares and foreign selling
Technology stocks led the decline in Yonhap’s account. In its later morning snapshot, Samsung Electronics was down 2% and SK hynix was down 2.86%. Yonhap also reported net foreign selling of 699.27 billion won in its snapshot. These figures describe that report’s observation, not the full day’s trading or total session flows.
Other reported concerns
The Seoul Economic Daily cited foreign selling, worries about overheated AI-related equities, and concerns about shipping through the Strait of Hormuz alongside oil prices. These were factors reported in its 9:58 a.m. account, not independently measured contributions to the index decline.
Was the fall simply a reaction to U.S. stocks?
Yonhap noted that U.S. shares had risen in Friday’s session: the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.83% and the Nasdaq Composite gained 0.64%. Those gains do not by themselves explain the subsequent Seoul decline; the Korean reports instead emphasized oil, geopolitical risk, technology shares, and foreign selling. The time periods differ, so the comparison should not be read as a direct same-session market relationship.
What did the won and the rest of the session show?
Yonhap quoted the won at 1,335.35 per U.S. dollar at 11:20 a.m. Korea time, 6.65 won higher than the previous session’s close. Separately, The Economic Times described the won as at its strongest level since October 2024; that characterization belongs to that report and is not established by Yonhap’s quoted exchange rate alone.
The available dated reports support a morning-market update, not a closing recap. They do not establish the final KOSPI level, the full-session foreign-investor balance, or how the market ended on Oct. 12.
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