Samsung, SK Hynix Plunge as China Chip Fears Hit KOSPI
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- Samsung Electronics fell 13.4% on Tuesday, recording its worst one-day decline in almost two decades on AI-infrastructure financing worries and rising Chinese competition.
- SK Hynix dropped 14.7% in the same session, with the combined selloff pushing South Korea's KOSPI index down 10.8% — its largest daily decrease since the early period of the U.S.-Iran conflict in March.
- Samsung and SK Hynix together represent nearly half of the KOSPI's weight, meaning their double-digit declines transmitted substantial pressure directly into the benchmark index.
- Reports that Chinese firms are developing domestic deep-ultraviolet lithography equipment renewed concerns that Chinese memory producers could expand capacity more rapidly.
- SK Hynix's U.S.-listed shares had closed 7.5% lower at $143.02 on Monday, their first finish below the $149 listing price since the company's Nasdaq debut earlier in July.
- SK Hynix supplies Nvidia with HBM chips, leaving its earnings particularly sensitive to AI spending and advanced-processor demand; the company is scheduled to report earnings on Wednesday, its first results since the Nasdaq listing.
Why it matters: Samsung and SK Hynix account for nearly half of the KOSPI, so their double-digit declines directly crushed the benchmark 10.8% in a single session. The trigger isn't a general risk-off move — it's specific fears about Chinese DUV lithography development and AI financing, and SK Hynix's Wednesday earnings now serve as the immediate inflection point for HBM demand expectations.
