Tesla regains top spot as Koreans’ favorite foreign stock

Tesla’s Model 3 is displayed during an event a day ahead of the official opening of the 2023 Munich Auto Show IAA Mobility, in Munich, Germany, Sept. 4, 2023. Reuters-Yonhap

By Anna J. Park

Tesla stocks have reclaimed their long-standing title as Koreans’ favorite foreign stock earlier this month, a position temporarily lost to Nvidia in May.

According to the Korea Securities Depository, the total holdings of Tesla stocks by Korean investors amounted to about $14.67 billion as of Thursday, topping the chart of local investors’ aggregate foreign stock holdings.

With the U.S. electric vehicle maker regaining its title, Nvidia stocks were pushed to second place, as their total holdings by Korean investors stood at around $13.42 billion.

Nvidia had temporarily overtaken Tesla for the top spot in terms of Koreans’ foreign stock holdings at the end of May, a position Tesla had held for over four years.

However, just over a month later, Tesla has reclaimed its position, thanks mainly to its recent bullish movements.

Since June 25, Tesla has achieved a seven-consecutive-day winning streak, surging 34 percent in its price during this period.

Particularly, Tesla stocks rose by 10.2 percent in a single trading session on Tuesday as the electric vehicle company announced the results of its second-quarter delivery of about 444,000 vehicles, which significantly surpassed market expectations.

In contrast, Nvidia stocks remained within the $120 range during the same period.

Analysts anticipate that downward pressure on Tesla’s stock price will be limited, given the company’s upcoming robotaxi technology unveiling scheduled for early August as well as the markets’ expectations for the roll-out of its full self-driving service in China.

“Announcements of the full self-driving system in China could provide momentum for Tesla to be recognized as a leading AI software company,” said Yim Eun-young, an analyst at Samsung Securities.

Song Sun-jae, another analyst at Hana Securities, said that Tesla has passed through its short-term bottom, adding “the ramp-up of Cybertruck production, the launch of next-generation low-cost models in 2025 and additional new factory expansions will strengthen Tesla’s bullish moves.”