AlphaScope Note · Korean Stock Market Guide
Korean Stock Order Types Explained: Market, Limit and KRX Best-Price Orders
A visual guide to how Korean stock orders use the last traded price, the best bid and ask, your price limit and available order-book depth.
The short version
The price shown as “current” on a Korean trading screen is the last completed trade. Your next execution depends on the live bid, ask, displayed depth and order size. A limit order draws a price boundary. A market order removes that boundary and prioritizes execution.
A buy cannot execute above the limit; a sell cannot execute below it.
If the first level is too small, the order may reach additional prices.
Limit during the day; the unfilled remainder converts for the closing auction.
A buy copies the lowest ask; a sell copies the highest bid.
Start with the order book
The last traded price is not necessarily the price you can trade now
The last traded price records a transaction that has already happened. A quote is an order still available in the book. In this example, the last trade is KRW 10,000, but the cheapest seller is asking KRW 10,100. A new market buy therefore starts at KRW 10,100, not KRW 10,000.
A useful mental model
Classify an order by its price boundary and what happens to the remainder
Instead of memorizing unfamiliar Korean names, ask two questions: which price boundary applies, and what happens to shares that do not execute immediately?
Limit
You choose the worst acceptable price.
Remainder: waits at the limitMarket
The order may cross several opposite-side price levels.
Remainder: may remain if liquidity runs outLimit-to-Market-on-Close
It behaves as a limit order until the closing call auction.
Boundary: removed when the remainder convertsImmediately Executable Limit
A buy copies the lowest ask; a sell copies the highest bid.
Remainder: waits at that one selected priceInteractive order simulator
Change the last price, your limit and quantity to see the execution path
This is a simplified continuous-trading example. It does not model fees, taxes, real KRX tick sizes, changing liquidity, smart order routing or venue selection. It explains mechanics; it does not predict an actual fill.
A boundary against an unfavorable execution price
What a limit really means
A limit means “no worse than this price,” not “only at this price”
A buy limit says, “do not pay more than my limit.” A sell limit says, “do not sell below my limit.” If a better opposite-side quote is available, the order can execute at that better price.
Result: The KRW 10,100 ask is above your cap, so the order waits at KRW 9,900.
Result: Entering KRW 10,200 does not force you to pay KRW 10,200. The cheaper KRW 10,100 ask executes first.
The order cannot cross your unfavorable boundary.
The trade may never happen if the market does not reach your limit.
No investor-set price boundary
How a market order actually behaves
A market order is not a “buy at the current price” button
You specify the security and quantity, but not the price. During continuous trading, if your order is larger than the quantity at the best opposite-side quote, it can split across additional levels.
조건부지정가
The condition is tied to the closing auction
It is a limit order intraday, but the unfilled remainder converts for the closing call auction
A KRW 9,800 limit-to-market-on-close buy behaves like an ordinary KRW 9,800 limit during continuous trading. At the start of the closing call auction, any unfilled quantity converts to a market order. From that point, KRW 9,800 is no longer the maximum purchase price.
- Continuous tradingKRW 9,800 limit
The order waits at the chosen price.
Price boundary - Still unfilledRemainder stays
No seller has met the KRW 9,800 bid.
Waiting - Closing auction beginsConverts to market
The unfilled quantity joins the closing call auction.
Execution priority - Hypothetical closeKRW 10,200
If matched, the purchase can occur above the original limit.
Boundary removed
Conversion does not guarantee execution. The closing auction may still leave quantity unfilled. Availability and input restrictions depend on the security, session, venue and broker.
The two KRX names most likely to confuse overseas investors
One copies a tradable opposite-side price; the other copies a same-side waiting price
Neither order asks you to type a price, but neither is a market order. At submission, the system copies one live quote as the order’s limit price. The order does not keep chasing a worse quote.
Immediately Executable Limit 최유리지정가Copies the opposite side’s best quote: the lowest ask for a buy or the highest bid for a sell. It can attempt an immediate trade.
Best Limit 최우선지정가Copies the best quote on the same side: the highest bid for a buy or the lowest ask for a sell. It normally joins the queue instead of trading immediately.
For a 250-share buy, the 100 shares offered at KRW 10,100 execute. The remaining 150 wait as a KRW 10,100 buy limit. They do not automatically move up to KRW 10,200. For a sell, the order instead copies the highest bid.
All 250 shares are submitted as a KRW 10,000 buy limit. Because that price is below the KRW 10,100 ask, it does not execute immediately and queues behind existing bids at KRW 10,000. For a sell, the order instead copies the lowest ask.
Can cross multiple ask levels
Copies only the lowest ask
Copies the highest bid
Why an order can miss even after the price trades
Better prices execute first; at the same price, earlier orders execute first
KRX continuous trading follows price and time priority. A higher bid outranks a lower bid, while a lower ask outranks a higher ask. At the same price, the order received first has priority.
The higher buy price takes priority. For sell orders, the lower ask takes priority.
Even if trades print at your limit, your order may remain unfilled until earlier quantity at that price has executed.
Quantity instructions and Korea’s multi-venue market
IOC and FOK control the remainder; midpoint and stop-limit orders solve different problems
If a KRW 10,100 IOC buy for 250 shares can immediately buy only 100 shares, those 100 execute and the remaining 150 are canceled.
In the same book, FOK executes nothing because all 250 shares cannot be filled immediately at the permitted price.
The order price automatically adjusts with the midpoint. It is not the same as copying one fixed best quote.
This differs from the Korean limit-to-market-on-close order, whose conversion is tied to the closing auction rather than a stop trigger.
A practical screen glossary
Korean labels you may see in a domestic brokerage app
Translations vary by broker. The descriptions below focus on function, while the Korean text helps you identify the control on an HTS or MTS screen.
The most recent completed transaction—not necessarily your next execution price.
The lowest price currently offered by a seller.
The highest price currently offered by a buyer.
A limit order whose unfilled remainder converts for the closing auction.
Copies the best opposite-side quote as one fixed limit price.
Copies the best same-side quote and normally joins that queue.
Choosing an order
There is no universally “best” order—choose the risk you understand
You prioritize price control and accept the possibility of no execution.
Inspect several order-book levels and compare your size with displayed depth.
A buy copies the lowest ask; a sell copies the highest bid.
Understand that the original price boundary disappears when the remainder converts.
A buy copies the highest bid; a sell copies the lowest ask.
Six checks before submitting a Korean stock order
Did you separate the last price from the executable quote? A buyer looks first at the best ask; a seller looks first at the best bid.
Is first-level depth large enough for your order? If not, a market order may reach additional prices.
Which matters more: price control or immediacy? No order fully guarantees both.
What happens to unfilled shares? Distinguish waiting, immediate cancellation, all-or-none cancellation and closing conversion.
Is the market in continuous trading or a call auction? The execution process differs at the open and close.
Which venue and broker rules apply? KRX, NXT, session, security status and broker support can change the choices shown.
Frequently asked questions
Common mistakes on Korean order screens
Will a market order execute at the “current price” shown on screen?
Not necessarily. 현재가 is the last traded price. A market order executes against current opposite-side liquidity and can split across several prices.
If I enter a KRW 10,200 buy limit, must I pay KRW 10,200?
No. Better asks execute first. If the best ask is KRW 10,100, available shares at KRW 10,100 execute before the order can use liquidity at KRW 10,200.
Why was my order not filled even though trades occurred at my limit?
Earlier orders at the same price have time priority. Trades can occur at your limit while your order still waits behind older quantity.
Does an Immediately Executable Limit Order keep following the market?
No. It copies the best opposite-side quote at submission as one limit price. An unfilled remainder waits there instead of following a worse next quote.
Is a Best Limit Order the same as the best available execution price?
No. In KRX terminology, it copies the best quote on your own side: the highest bid for a buy or lowest ask for a sell. It usually joins the queue rather than executing immediately.
Does a Limit-to-Market-on-Close Order guarantee a closing fill?
No. The unfilled quantity converts and joins the closing call auction, but insufficient opposite-side liquidity can still leave shares unfilled.
Are Limit-to-Market-on-Close and Stop-Limit the same?
No. The first converts an existing limit order for the closing auction. A stop-limit activates a limit order after a specified market-price trigger is reached.
Primary sources
Official references used for this guide
- Korea Exchange: Stock order types and conditionsOfficial English definitions, price selection rules, IOC/FOK and session availability.
- KRX: Guide to Trading in the Korean Stock MarketTrading sessions, tick sizes, daily limits and quotation types.
- KRX: Price and time priority in continuous tradingOfficial explanation of execution priority.
- Financial Services Commission: Approval and launch plan for NextradeMultiple-venue structure, extended hours, midpoint and stop-limit orders.