Key Takeaways
Tesla and SpaceX — two stock (ticker)s that Korean investors have piled roughly 30 trillion won into — are wobbling in tandem. Tesla shares have dropped nearly 30% so far this year, while SpaceX recently changed hands in a secondary-share transaction at a price below the issue price set in its previous funding round. Both names drew capital on the strength of their electric-vehicle and space-exploration growth narratives, but the current pullback isn't about narrative — it's rooted in hard numbers: delivery volumes, utilization rates, and margins.
What Happened
Korean investors' combined holdings in Tesla and SpaceX are estimated at around 30 trillion won. The two names have long been among Seohak-gaemi's favorite U.S. growth stock (ticker)s, but the recent trend has run in the opposite direction. Tesla shares are down 30% from the start of the year, as intensifying competition in EV sales compounds growing doubts about the pace of progress on next-generation AI initiatives such as robotaxis and Full Self-Driving (FSD).
SpaceX, being privately held, has no publicly quoted share price. However, secondary-market transactions — in which employees and early investors buy and sell their stakes — effectively serve as a proxy opening price. The price set in the most recent such transaction came in below the issue price from the company's prior funding round. While revenue from the Starlink satellite internet business continues to grow, this suggests the market has lowered its expectations for the rest of the business, including launch vehicles and the Mars program.
Background and Context
The EV market is currently caught between slowing demand and oversupply. As utilization rates fall across the production lines automakers rushed to expand, per-unit fixed costs rise, fueling price competition that erodes margins. Tesla is no exception. With low-cost competition from Chinese automakers converging with the broader shift toward electrification among legacy automakers, every delay in the commercialization of robotaxis and FSD pulls the stock (ticker)'s valuation back from a future narrative toward present-day earnings for reassessment. In this phase, valuations are being recalculated around hard figures like delivery volumes and gross margins.
Market and Stock (Ticker) Impact
- Tesla itself — A phase of premium compression is underway for the growth stock (ticker), driven by intensifying EV sales competition alongside concerns over delays in robotaxi and FSD commercialization.
- LG Energy Solution and Samsung SDI — Battery supply volumes to Tesla make up a meaningful share of revenue, so a slowdown in automaker utilization rates could feed through to shipment adjustments with a lag.
- POSCO Future M — Positioned further down the supply chain in materials such as cathode materials, the company tends to feel the effects of automaker and battery utilization adjustments later.
- Hanwha Aerospace and Korea Aerospace Industries — While SpaceX's valuation adjustment has limited direct business relevance, it could serve as a reference point for market sentiment toward domestic aerospace theme stocks.
Investor Checkpoints
- Tesla's next-quarter earnings release — watch for changes in delivery volumes and gross margin.
- Official timelines for robotaxi and FSD commercialization, and whether they translate into actual revenue.
- Pricing trends in SpaceX's next funding round or subsequent secondary-market transactions.
- Monthly export/import and shipment data that would reveal changes in Korean battery makers' supply volumes to Tesla.
Outlook
If robotaxi commercialization begins to show up as actual revenue, the case for re-rating Tesla could resurface. For SpaceX as well, continued growth in Starlink revenue could help secondary-market prices rebound. However, if the slowdown in EV demand proves prolonged, or if SpaceX's next funding round brings another valuation markdown, unrealized losses for Korean retail investors could deepen further. It remains unclear whether current share prices reflect a bottoming-out process or a genuine contraction in demand.
This article is automatically summarized and analyzed content based on the original news report. View original (Maeil Business Newspaper, Securities)
