Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix are progressing toward early completion of their share buybacks, which have helped support South Korea’s stock market during seasonal weakness and macroeconomic volatility. The Korea Exchange said Samsung bought 29.8 million shares over 20 trading days from Aug. 24, spending 10.3078 trillion Korean won, while SK Hynix bought 14.15 million shares over 22 trading days from Aug. 20, spending 24.39 trillion won. The reported completion rates were 74.69% for Samsung and 58.79% for SK Hynix, against planned purchases of 53.285968 million and 24.07 million shares, respectively. The latest report projected completion around mid-November, while an industry source said the companies could finish within the third week of October based on trading-day purchase rates of about 2 million and 650,000 shares a day. An earlier account recorded Samsung’s purchases at 39.8 million shares, creating a discrepancy that remains unresolved. Analysts say the end of the buybacks could make the return of foreign and individual investors more important for sustaining a market rebound.