South Korean Shares Retreat from Record High

The benchmark KOSPI climbed 4.10% to close at 5,298 on Monday, rebounding from the previous week’s losses and pushing toward fresh record highs as investors returned to risk assets following a sharp tech-led sell-off. The market had slipped late last week in line with Wall Street’s tech slump on AI valuation concerns, but sentiment improved after US stocks rebounded on Friday, spurring bargain buying across Asian markets. Broad-based sector strength was evident across the index, with notable gains in Samsung Electronics (+5.74%), SK Hynix (+6.08%), SK Square (+10.12%), Hanwha Aerospace (+5%), and Doosan Enerbility (+7.75%). Samsung Electronics shares jumped as excitement grew around its high-bandwidth memory technology. The company is set to begin mass production of sixth-generation HBM4 chips this month and begin shipments to Nvidia shortly after the Lunar New Year, supporting the US chipmaker’s next-generation AI accelerator lineup.

The benchmark KOSPI fell 1.44% to close at 5,089 on Friday, extending losses from the previous session, as weakness in US tech stocks weighed on local semiconductor heavyweights. The decline followed an overnight drop on Wall Street, driven by concerns that excessive AI-related capital spending could pressure profitability and valuations across major tech names. The selloff hit Korea’s semiconductor-heavy market hard, with Samsung Electronics (-0.31%) and SK hynix (-0.36%) posting losses and dragging the index lower amid heavy foreign investor selling. Losses were further intensified by program-driven trades, with a sell-side sidecar briefly triggered in KOSPI 200 futures during early trading. Weakness broadened across the market, with notable decliners including Hyundai Motor (-4.20%), LG Energy Solution (-2.53%), SK Square (-3.37%), Hanwha Aerospace (-3.59%), HD Hyundai Heavy Industries (-2.00%), and Kia Corporation (-2.94%).

The benchmark KOSPI fell 3.86% to close at 5,164 on Thursday, pulling back from its highest level in the previous session, as a renewed global tech sell-off weighed heavily on chipmakers. The decline followed overnight losses on Wall Street, where valuation-driven selling in US technology stocks spilled over into global semiconductors after AMD issued a weaker-than-expected outlook. Semiconductor heavyweights Samsung Electronics and SK hynix plunged 5.91% and 6.78% respectively, exerting the largest drag on the index. Losses were concentrated in technology and AI-related names, reflecting profit-taking after recent gains. Other notable decliners included Hyundai Motor (-3.08%), LG Energy Solution (-1.86%), SK Square (-6.15%), Hanwha Aerospace (-7.78%), HD Hyundai Heavy Industries (-5.66%), and Doosan Enerbility (-6.22%). The Korean won also weakened against the US dollar, adding pressure to investor sentiment.