Kospi, Kosdaq trigger sell-side curbs as stock market plunge continues

A sell-side sidecar was triggered on the Kospi and Kosdaq on Friday, temporarily halting program sell orders for five minutes as the stock market continued its sharp decline.

The sell-side curb, known locally as a sidecar, was activated for the Kospi at 11:23 a.m., according to the Korea Exchange. This is the index's 21st sell-side curb this year.

A sell-side curb for the Kosdaq was activated at 11:47 a.m., the 11th of its kind this year.

A sell-side curb is triggered for the Kospi when the Kospi 200 futures price falls by 5 percent or more from the reference price and remains at that level for at least one minute. Once activated, it suspends trading of program sell orders for five minutes.

A sell-side curb for the Kosdaq is activated when Kosdaq 150 futures fall by 6 percent or more from the previous trading day's close and the Kosdaq 150 Index falls at least 3 percent, with both conditions sustained for at least one minute.

At the time of the Kospi sidecar activation, the Kospi 200 futures index stood at 1,070.80, down 56.88 points, or 5.04 percent, from the previous session's close.

Kosdaq 150 futures were trading at 1,273.30 when the Kosdaq sidecar was triggered, down 82.70 points, or 6.09 percent. The Kosdaq 150 Index stood at 1,268.02, down 79.60 points, or 5.90 percent.

BY JEONG HYE-JEONG [[email protected]]