Sidecar triggered on Kospi as index drops by 5.2%

A sidecar was triggered on the Kospi on Wednesday morning as the index plunged, marking the first activation of the mechanism in seven months.

A screen in Hana Bank's trading room in central Seoul shows the Kospi opening on Nov. 5. [NEWS1]

A sidecar was triggered on the Kospi on Wednesday morning as the index plunged, marking the first activation of the mechanism in seven months.

According to the Korea Exchange, program sell orders were temporarily suspended for five minutes at 9:46 a.m. after the Kospi 200 futures index dropped 30.35 points, or 5.2 percent, to 552.80 from the previous session’s close.

A sidecar is triggered when the index rises or falls by 5 percent or more for at least one minute.

This is the third time this year that a sidecar has been activated, with the last coming in April, when the futures index fell 5.19 percent to 312.05 from the previous day's close.

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom. BY KIM EUN-BIN [shin.minhee@joongang.co.kr]