This file photo, provided by LG Energy Solution Ltd. on Sept. 3, 2021, shows the showroom at its R&D center in Daejeon, 164 kilometers south of Seoul.
SEOUL, March 28 (Korea Bizwire) — Battery maker LG Energy Solution Ltd. (LGES) has been the most shorted South Korean stock since Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine.
According to the Korea Stock Exchange, the amount of short sale transactions of LGES totaled 921.7 billion won (US$753 million) during the period from March 11, when it was included in the benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI), to March 25.
The transactions were largest amount among the KOSPI 200 and the tech-heavy Korean Securities Dealers Automated Quotations (KOSDAQ) 150 index stocks subject to short selling.
LGES fell prey to speculative short sellers amid increasing downward pressure on its stock price resulting from the U.S. Federal Reserve’s belt-tightening move and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Another factor is the hike in the price of raw materials such as nickel that in turn spiked concerns about its profitability, dampening investment sentiment throughout the battery industry.
Shares in LGES slid to a record low of 410,500 won on March 8. After being included in the KOSPI 200, its share price renewed its lowest record for three straight trading days from March 11 to 15.
During this period, the amount of short selling transactions for LGES stood at 658 billion won, a volume equivalent to 35.9 percent of the share’s total transactions.
In terms of the amount of short selling transactions, LGES was followed by Samsung Electronics Co. with 712.9 billion won, Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction Co. with 495.7 billion won, HMM Co. with 402.4 billion won and Kakao Corp. with 286.9 billion won.
Ashley Song (ashley@koreabizwire.com)
