PiCK

Summary

  • The Kospi plunged 8% shortly after the open, breaking below 5,000 for the first time in about 10 months and triggering a circuit breaker.
  • Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix fell 9.98% and 11.79%, respectively, as a slump in heavyweight semiconductor shares widened the index’s losses.
  • Investor sentiment toward chip stocks froze amid concerns over data-center regulation in the U.S., anxiety over AI investment, and an overnight selloff in AI tech shares on Wall Street.

Forecast Trend Report by Period

Trading Halted for 20 Minutes Three Minutes After the Open

Samsung Electronics, SK Hynix Slide in Tandem

South Korea’s Kospi tumbled more than 8% shortly after the open on Nov. 6, temporarily halting trading on the main bourse. A sharp selloff in heavyweight semiconductor stocks, driven by anxiety over U.S. artificial intelligence investment, pushed the index below 5,000 for the first time in about 10 months.

The Korea Exchange triggered a circuit breaker on the main board at 9:03:33 a.m. on Nov. 6. At that point, the Kospi was at 4,923.47, down 460.33 points, or 8.55%, from the previous session. It was the first time since January that the index had fallen below 5,000.

A circuit breaker is triggered when the benchmark stays down more than 8% from the previous close for one minute. Once activated, trading across the entire market is suspended for 20 minutes.

Selling was concentrated in large-cap chip stocks. Samsung Electronics fell 9.98% from the previous session to 181,400 won, while SK Hynix dropped 11.79% to 1,115,000 won. The simultaneous slide in the two stocks widened the index’s losses.

Concerns over data-center regulation that surfaced after the U.S. midterm elections spread to South Korea’s stock market. With Democrats taking control of both the Senate and the House, worries grew that regulation of data-center construction and the AI industry could be strengthened. Doubts over whether massive AI investment would generate sufficient returns further chilled sentiment toward chip stocks.

AI-related technology shares also came under heavy selling pressure on Wall Street overnight. The three major U.S. indexes all slumped, erasing the previous day’s gains that had been fueled by hopes for easing election uncertainty.

Doohyun Hwang