Korean Retail Investors Flock to US Market Betting on SK Hynix ADR, 1.16 Trillion KRW Inflow Triggers Significant Premium

Odaily News According to data from the Korea Securities Depository, Korean retail investors are aggressively purchasing the ADR (American Depositary Receipt) of SK Hynix listed on the US Nasdaq, resulting in a significant premium for the ADR compared to the company's domestic shares.

From the listing of the SK Hynix ADR on Nasdaq on July 10 to August 19, Korean investors recorded cumulative net purchases of approximately $835 million (about 1.16 trillion KRW) in SK Hynix ADR, ranking second among US stocks bought by Korean investors during the same period and accounting for 16.4% of the total net purchases of US stocks by Korean investors.

This trend has led to a widening price gap between the SK Hynix ADR and its domestic shares. On August 19, SK Hynix's domestic shares closed down 9.75% at 1.5 million KRW, while the US-listed ADR rose 0.35% to close at $156.16. Since one SK Hynix ADR corresponds to 0.1 domestic share, the theoretical value of the domestic share converted from the ADR price should be approximately 10 times the ADR price. However, as of the 19th, the domestic share price was only 6.82 times the converted ADR price, indicating an approximate premium of 46.67% for the ADR over the domestic shares. (NATE)