US and South Korean biotech-related indices are showing dramatically divergent trends, deepening confusion among investors. While US biotech indices have hit 52-week highs, powered by large-scale mergers and acquisitions (M&A) and sector rotation, South Korea’s biotech indices have plunged more than 20% as capital floods into semiconductor mega-caps, resulting in what market watchers call “double alienation.”<\/p>\n
According to the Korea Exchange on the 19th, the “TIGER KOSDAQ 150 Biotech” exchange-traded fund (ETF) fell 20.63% over the past month through the 16th. During the same period, most South Korean biotech active ETFs posted double-digit losses: “UNICORN K-Bio Active” (-19.56%), “RISE Bio TOP10 Active” (-16.45%), and “TIGER Technology Transfer Bio Active” (-13.22%).<\/p>\n
In contrast, US biotech stocks continue their upward trajectory. The Nasdaq Biotechnology Index (NBI), a benchmark for US biotech, has surged sharply, nearing its 52-week high. The “SPDR S&P Biotech ETF” (XBI), which invests in US small- and mid-cap biotech stocks, hit a 52-week high of $165.71 on the 9th. As a result, US biotech ETFs listed in South Korea have also rallied: “KODEX US S&P Bio (Synthetic)” rose 13.62% over the month, while “TIGER US Nasdaq Bio” (7.55%) and “KoAct US Bio Healthcare Active” (6.97%) also delivered positive returns.<\/p>\n
Historically, South Korean and US biotech indices moved in tandem. According to securities industry analysis, the correlation between the two indices reached 0.55 through 2025, but has since reversed to -0.63 in the second quarter of this year. The synchronized pattern where US biotech gains lifted South Korean stocks has completely broken down.<\/p>\n
The strength in the US biotech market is underpinned by sector rotation \u2014 as profits are taken on semiconductor mega-caps, capital flows into retail, telecommunications, and biotech \u2014 alongside active M&A by large pharmaceutical companies. Major pharma firms are successively acquiring small- and mid-cap biotech companies with promising drug pipelines, boosting sentiment across the sector. Moderna’s stock price surged roughly 23% in a month, while Novo Nordisk posted gains of around 16%.<\/p>\n
South Korea’s situation, however, is the polar opposite. Even as the KOSPI rallied toward the 9,000 level, biotech stocks are suffering from “double alienation,” eroding investors’ perceived returns. Double alienation refers to the phenomenon where stocks fall more than the market average in downturns and rise less during rebounds. Over the past month, the KRX Healthcare Index fell 9.20%, while the KOSDAQ 150 Healthcare Index plunged 20.22%.<\/p>\n
An analyst at iM Securities noted, “While fundamental issues are cited as reasons for the KOSDAQ’s underperformance, market concentration should be viewed as the primary cause.” Biotech stocks have traditionally been popular among investors seeking excess returns due to their volatility \u2014 a single catalyst such as clinical trial results or technology out-licensing can send share prices soaring. However, the emergence of single-stock leveraged ETFs for Samsung Electronics (005930.KS) and SK Hynix (006660.KS) has significantly diminished the relative investment appeal of biotech stocks, according to industry observers.<\/p>\n
Lee Jung-wook, head of the ETF management division at Timefolio Asset Management, pointed out, “Trading demand for KOSDAQ biotech stocks is increasingly shifting toward the KOSPI. Biotech stocks typically surge on positive news, but recently, even favorable developments at companies like Hanmi Pharmaceutical failed to translate into share price gains.” Indeed, Hanmi Pharmaceutical (128940.KS) disclosed a technology export deal with Eli Lilly valued at 1.9 trillion won (approximately $1.3 billion) on the 1st of last month, yet its stock fell 5.94% the following day \u2014 a paradoxical outcome.<\/p>\n
Experts assess that the timing of a rebound in South Korean biotech stocks depends on whether the semiconductor concentration eases. Huh Hye-min, an analyst at Kiwoom Securities, noted that “the KOSDAQ pharmaceutical index is undergoing its steepest price correction among major historical adjustment phases,” but added that a meaningful recovery will require the supply-demand dynamics tilted toward semiconductors to stabilize and individual company performance to be reaffirmed.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"US and South Korean biotech-related indices are showing dramatically divergent trends, deepening confusion among investors. While US biotech…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":91767,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[457],"tags":[3214,39898,38065,987,337,48310,864,48309,48308,48305,15865,276,275,48306,48307],"class_list":["post-91766","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-korea-exchange","tag-eli-lilly","tag-hanmi-pharmaceutical","tag-im-securities","tag-kiwoom-securities","tag-korea-exchange","tag-kosdaq-150-healthcare-index","tag-krx","tag-krx-healthcare-index","tag-moderna","tag-nasdaq-biotechnology-index-nbi","tag-novo-nordisk","tag-samsung-electronics","tag-sk-hynix","tag-spdr-sp-biotech-etf-xbi","tag-tiger-kosdaq-150-biotech"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/korea\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/91766","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/korea\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/korea\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/korea\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/korea\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=91766"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/korea\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/91766\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/korea\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/91767"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/korea\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=91766"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/korea\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=91766"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/korea\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=91766"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}