S&P 500 closes at a record 7,757.64 — KOSPI ends the week at 6,258.77
The S&P 500 closed at a record 7,757.64 in the week Korea's KOSPI finished at 6,258.77 for its seventh consecutive weekly decline
The three lines
- Friday in New York: S&P 500 7,757.64 (+0.62%) and Nasdaq 26,690.62 (+1.30%) at records, Dow 54,036.93 (+0.28%)
- Same week in Seoul: KOSPI closed 6,258.77, a seventh straight weekly loss, with foreign investors selling 859 billion won on Friday
- This week's pivot is US July CPI on Wednesday — consensus is 2.7–2.8% year over year
Key questions
- Why are US stocks at records
- Because the labor data was bad. US non-farm payrolls fell by 23,000 in July against expectations of roughly 80,000 added jobs, which strengthened expectations of Federal Reserve rate cuts. The S&P 500 rose 0.62% to a record 7,757.64, the Nasdaq gained 1.30% to 26,690.62, and the Dow added 0.28% to 54,036.93 — the best weekly gains for the major indexes since mid-April.
- Why is Korea moving the other way
- The same catalyst arrives on a delay, and Korea has its own problem in the meantime. The first week of August brought a 5.12% Monday drop and another near-4% fall on Thursday, ending with a 0.60% decline Friday to 6,258.77. Foreign investors sold 859 billion won in a single session. The declines were concentrated in large-cap semiconductors — on some days a majority of listed stocks rose while the index fell.
- What matters this week
- US July CPI, released Wednesday at 8:30 a.m. Eastern (9:30 p.m. Korea time). Consensus is 2.7–2.8% year over year. With employment already soft, a benign print completes the best possible combination for rate cuts; a hot print produces the worst — weak jobs and sticky prices together. Korean data follows: household lending trends Thursday, import-export price indexes Friday.
On Friday night two markets read the same headline in opposite directions.
In the United States, news that July payrolls fell by 23,000 sent all three major indexes higher. The S&P 500 rose 0.62% to a record 7,757.64; the Nasdaq gained 1.30% to 26,690.62, also a record; the Dow added 0.28% to 54,036.93. It was the strongest week for US equities since mid-April.
In Korea, the same week ended with the KOSPI at 6,258.77 — a seventh consecutive weekly decline. Foreign investors sold 859 billion won on Friday alone.
1. Why bad jobs data is only good news in one place
The mechanism is straightforward. Weak employment raises the odds of Federal Reserve rate cuts; lower rates raise the present value of future earnings; stocks rise. With consensus at roughly +80,000 and the actual figure at -23,000, the surprise was large enough to move rate expectations meaningfully.
The complication is that this channel reaches American assets first. A shift in Fed expectations lowers the discount rate on US equities immediately. It reaches Korea through two slower routes — a weaker dollar drawing flows into emerging markets, and recovering real demand lifting exports. Both take time, and in the interval Korea trades its own problems.
In early August that problem was semiconductors. The KOSPI fell 5.12% on Monday, rose 4.33% on Wednesday, dropped roughly 4% on Thursday and slipped 0.60% on Friday. Most of that amplitude came from a handful of large-cap chip names, while the broader market frequently moved the other way.
2. Last week, side by side
| Item | United States | Korea |
|---|---|---|
| Friday close | S&P 7,757.64 (+0.62%) · Nasdaq 26,690.62 (+1.30%) · Dow 54,036.93 (+0.28%) | KOSPI 6,258.77 (-0.60%) |
| Milestone | S&P and Nasdaq record closes | Seventh straight weekly loss |
| Week | Best since mid-April | About -5% (from a reported 6,595.45) |
| Flows | Software and mega-cap tech led | Foreigners sold ₩859bn |
| Catalyst | July payrolls -23,000 (est. +80,000) | Large-cap semiconductor selling |
3. The week ahead turns on Wednesday
| Date | Event | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Aug 11 | Bank of Korea MPC minutes | Distribution of hawks and doves at the July meeting |
| Aug 12 | US July CPI | Consensus 2.7–2.8% y/y — the week's decisive number |
| Aug 13 | Korea July household lending review | Domestic liquidity alongside property policy |
| Aug 14 | Korea import-export price indexes | FX and commodity pass-through to exporters |
Wednesday matters because employment has already landed on one side. If inflation settles in the high 2s, the combination that most favors cuts — cooling labor, contained prices — is complete. If it runs hot, markets get the worst pairing instead, and Friday's records become vulnerable.
4. What remains unverified
The KOSPI's weekly percentage move is calculated from a reported prior-week close of 6,595.45 and shifts with the reference date. Whether a seven-week losing streak is a record was not checked. The 2.7–2.8% CPI consensus is an estimate, and once the release lands, core services and shelter detail will matter more than the headline.
What CPI measures and how to read it is in today's companion piece "US CPI explained." How rate cuts reach ordinary deposits and loans is in "When America cuts rates, what happens to your savings." Friday's US session is covered in "Bad jobs data launched a record high."