Global Stock Market Trends — March 29, 2026

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1. South Korea Market Briefing

• KOSPI rebounds, KOSDAQ closes slightly higher: Domestic markets opened lower due to inflation fears stemming from stalled U.S.-Iran peace talks and the launch of Google’s TurboQuant. However, both indices managed to recover by the close of the session.

• Record-breaking foreign sell-off: Foreign investors net sold approximately 30 trillion won worth of stocks in March alone. The sell-off on March 26th hit 3.7 trillion won, marking the 6th largest single-day net sell-off since 1999.

• KOSPI battles around the 5,300 mark and frequent sidecars: The market has seen extreme volatility since the U.S.-Iran conflict began, with "sidecars" being triggered every other day. The KOSPI is currently engaged in a tug-of-war around the 5,300-point level.

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2. U.S. Market Insights

• Major indices hit 6-month lows: U.S. markets saw a sharp drop in big tech stocks on Friday, pushing all three major indices to their lowest closes in over six months. The Dow Jones plummeted 792 points, the S&P 500 fell 1.7%, and the Nasdaq officially entered correction territory (a decline of over 10% from its peak).

• S&P 500 correction fears: CNBC reports that the S&P 500 could follow other benchmarks into a correction phase as the war enters its fifth week, further heightening investor anxiety.

• Fifth consecutive week of losses: Charles Schwab’s weekly outlook suggests that the Middle East conflict, rising oil prices, and climbing U.S. Treasury yields are weighing heavily on sentiment, putting the indices on track for a fifth straight week of losses.

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3. Global Macro and Market Drivers

• Oil prices spike — the biggest risk: Brent crude has surpassed $100 a barrel due to the ongoing U.S.-Iran conflict, causing maximum volatility in the global oil market. The spike has fueled inflation concerns and dampened risk appetite. Prices dipped momentarily on rumors of U.S.-Iran talks, but volatility remains high as negotiations stall.

• Dollar strength pressures gold: With oil prices and the U.S. dollar climbing due to Middle East tensions, gold prices have struggled. Investors have been favoring the dollar over safe-haven assets like gold as inflation concerns grow.

• PMI data — key for KOSPI fundamentals: As foreign investors continue a five-day net selling streak in the KOSPI, analysts are keeping a close watch on the Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI). Some suggest that the semiconductor sector has a relatively lower correlation with PMI figures.

Note: All figures are taken verbatim from the sources provided; '—' is used where data was not available.