From BTS to aespa, Ok-pop idol romances are tanking inventory costs3 min read

aespa’s Karina, left, and actor Lee Jae-wook [NEWS1, YONHAP]

 
From leaked images of Jennie and V to announcement of the romance between aespa’s Karina and actor Lee Jae-wook, the connection standing of Ok-pop celebrities has confirmed a key think about buyers’ sentiment towards the companies that characterize them.
 
Karina, the chief of SM Leisure’s dominant fourth-generation lady group, was revealed to be relationship the “Unattainable Inheritor” actor on Tuesday. 
 
SM Leisure’s shares opened at 80,700 received ($60) that morning, however took a downturn round 10:20 a.m. when Dispatch first reported that the 2 had been in a relationship.
 
The corporate’s shares stooped as little as 76,700 received round 1:30 p.m. — a lower of 4.96 p.c from the earlier buying and selling day — after the 2 actors’ companies confirmed the romance.
 
SM Leisure’s shares finally closed at 77,900 received, down 3.47 p.c from the day past’s shut. The agency’s market cap fell to 1.86 trillion received, that means that some 66.7 billion received had evaporated over the course of the day.
 
The shares rebounded barely on Wednesday, rising 2.05 p.c to shut at 79,500 received. 

aespa is projected to account for 23 p.c of SM Leisure’s whole live performance income, second behind NCT’s 45 p.c, in line with a report from Mirae Asset Securities. The lady group’s determine surpasses these of many well-known SM artists corresponding to SHINee, TVXQ, Taeyeon and Pink Velvet.
 
By way of streaming-related income, aespa is predicted to take up 14 p.c of the full income, sitting in third place behind NCT’s 26 p.c and Tremendous Junior’s 22 p.c. aespa is adopted by Exo, Pink Velvet, Ladies’ Technology and SHINee.
 
aespa’s essential place in SM’s portfolio underscores the explanation why prime celebrities, particularly lively Ok-pop artists with devoted fandoms, usually select to maintain their relationship life confidential. 
 
Point out of relationship standing has historically been thought of taboo within the typical Ok-pop scene. Companies are likely to chorus from commenting on hypothesis concerning their artists’ romances, usually claiming that rumored {couples} are “simply buddies.” Firms which have confirmed such studies up to now have finished so reluctantly after the leak of paparazzi photographs.
 
Karina is one among few idols who has instantly revealed particulars of her relationship life.
 

 
However even Ok-pop {couples} who keep quiet about their standing can affect their companies’ shares. Blackpink’s Jennie and BTS’s V, despatched their companies spiraling with only a photograph. 
 
Rumors started swirling in regards to the couple after a photograph of man and girl inside a automotive was uploaded to social media on Might 22, 2022. Although its high quality wasn’t top-notch, followers insisted that the figures, each in sun shades, strongly resembled Jennie and V.
 
The day after the photograph’s launch, shares of YG Leisure, which represents Blackpink, slipped 1.97 p.c to 54,600 received. They tumbled an additional 1.28 p.c the day after.
 
Shares of HYBE, which represents BTS, had been unchanged on Might 23, however sunk 2.49 p.c on Might 24.
 
Neither company commented on the images, however their shares declined as soon as once more after one other array of images imagined to depict the 2 singers had been posted in August of 2022. The images had been alleged to have been leaked from Jennie’s personal account.
 
YG Leisure’s shares fell 5.25 p.c to 56,000 received on Aug. 23, the day the images had been first disclosed, whereas these of HYBE decreased 6.25 p.c to 172,500 received.
 
The drop in worth isn’t all the time so steep, relying on the recognition and affect of the artists in query. The affirmation of Twice’s Momo and Tremendous Junior’s Kim Hee-cheol, for instance, didn’t ship fairly as massive of a shock wave by means of the singers’ respective companies.
 
The couple was outed by one other unique paparazzi report from Dispatch on Jan. 2, 2020. Shares of JYP Leisure and SM Leisure — which characterize Twice and Tremendous Junior, respectively — dipped fairly modestly after each side confirmed the information. SM slid 1.3 p.c whereas JYP fell simply 0.21 p.c.
 

BY LEE JAE-LIM [lee.jaelim@joongang.co.kr]