KOSPI 200 Index

Supported by its active and volatile cash market and favorable East Asian economy, KOSPI 200 has become one of the most active futures markets in the world. Other than Korean investors themselves, international investment banks, asset management funds, as well as hedged funds have tapped in to grab the emerging opportunity, contributing about 10% of the total transaction.

Two hundred companies compiled in KOSPI 200 stock index futures represent around 70% of the total capitalization in Korea Stock Exchange. Unquestionably, this figure infers that KOSPI 200 is an indicator of Korean economic performance as a whole. Out of the two hundred elements, Samsung Electronics alone takes 20% of the total portion. Its performance, therefore, highly influences the movements of the index.

Although KOSPI 200 in many cases shares many specifications with Nikkei 225 such as in term of contract size, trading months, and number of component companies, its characteristics are more similar to Hang Seng’s. The explanation lies beneath its method of calculation and the condition of having a few companies taking up much larger portions than the others. Like Hang Seng, KOSPI 200 adopts the market capitalization method. Yet, unlike Hang Seng and Nikkei, KOSPI is more correlated to Asian markets than to US markets.

Contract Specifications for Kospi 200 Index Futures: