[Young Journalist JunKi Shin] Many South Korean individual investors have been pouring a huge amount of money into SpaceX ever since it went public in the U.S. In just two weeks after the listing, they bought nearly 3 trillion won worth of shares. However, the stock has since fallen more than 30% from its high, leaving many investors facing heavy losses.

SpaceX Emerges as Top Pick for South Korean Retail Investors

Data from the South Korea Securities Depository shows that South Korean retail investors bought a net USD 1.879 billion (about KRW 2.909 trillion) worth of SpaceX shares between June 12 to June 25. This was the highest net buy for any foreign stock during that period.

Notably, South Korean investors were actually selling U.S. stocks overall during June, cutting back a net USD 332 million to take profits. SpaceX was the only stock they kept buying. It appears that many sold their other holdings just to secure SpaceX shares.

To compare, Micron Technology reported its highest quarterly revenue of USD 41.46 billion around the same time. South Korean investors, though, only bought about USD 470 million worth of its shares. That is not even a quarter of what they invested in SpaceX. This indicates that South Korean investors were far more attracted to the growth potential of the aerospace industry than to semiconductor stocks.

The continuous buying didn't stop at regular shares. A leveraged ETF that tracks twice the daily performance of SpaceX brought in USD 234 million in net purchases, ranking in the top 10 most bought foreign stocks. Some investors were making highly aggressive bets on SpaceX's upward trend.

This massive interest from Korean retail investors largely stems from SpaceX's status as a pioneering private aerospace company led by Elon Musk. On top of that, investors who missed out on the IPO were finally able to buy shares freely in the open market, causing several eager buyers to enter the market at once.

The Stock Plummets After Debt News

However, market performance did not meet expectations. Right after listing, SpaceX surged to USD 225.64 on June 16, which was more than 67% above the IPO price of USD 135. But the upward momentum did not last. From the fourth day of trading, the stock started sliding, and it now sits around USD 154.54, down about 31.5% from that peak. The worst single day was June 22, when the stock fell 16.43% in one session.

This sharp decline was triggered by news that SpaceX is planning to raise at least USD 20 billion by issuing corporate bonds to fund AI infrastructure. Investors grew concerned about the rising debt levels and whether it would negatively impact shareholder value.

While many still believe SpaceX has a strong long-term future, analysts warn that the stock is experiencing high volatility, which is typical for newly listed companies. When a hot stock first goes public, prices are often driven more by market excitement than company's actual fundamental value.

The leveraged ETF carries even higher risks. Because it moves at twice the rate of the underlying stock, losses accumulate twice as fast. There have already been plenty of cases in South Korea where investors suffered major losses from leveraged ETFs, and this situation looks similar.

Park Sang hyun, a researcher at iM Securities, noted that the funds raised through the bonds is expected to go toward paying off debts at X (formerly Twitter) and xAI, both of which SpaceX took over, as well as funding AI projects. "The fact that even SpaceX is borrowing this heavily has fueled worries about debt risks building up across the entire AI industry," he said.

▶원문 기사: “3조원 쏟아부었는데 -30%”…서학개미의 블랙홀된 스페이스X (이코노미스트, 2026. 6. 25)

◆이코노미스트가 글로벌 차세대 경제 리더, 청소년 기자단 영 저널리스트와 함께합니다. 영 저널리스트 기자단은 프리미엄 경제지 이코노미스트, 논술 전문 기관 Ni 에듀케이션과 함께 주요 시사 이슈를 팔로우업하고 직접 기획, 취재, 기사 작성 활동을 하며 사회적 문제를 고심하고 해결 방안을 제시하는 과정을 경험하게 됩니다. 이번 기사는 영 저널리스트 기자단이 이코노미스트 기사를 영문으로 번역하며 이슈를 팔로우업한 기사입니다. 차세대 글로벌 경제 리더, <영 저널리스트 with  이코노미스트> 영문 기사는 매주 연재됩니다.

ⓒ이코노미스트(https://economist.co.kr) '내일을 위한 경제뉴스 이코노미스트' 무단 전재 및 재배포 금지