On Friday, Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix both saw declines in the NextTrade pre-market.
NextTrade reported that at 8:15 a.m. (KST), Samsung Electronics was trading at 207,000 KRW (about 156 USD), down 7,500 KRW (about 5.67 USD) (3.50%) from the previous day’s close.
SK Hynix fell by 25,000 KRW (about 18.9 USD) (2.04%) to 1,198,000 KRW (about 904 USD).
The previous day, Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix had already dropped 4.03% and 5.49% respectively during regular trading. The KOSPI index closed down 3.52% at 5,533.77, erasing all gains from the day before.
However, SK Hynix’s announcement this morning to halt the initial public offering (IPO) review of its U.S. subsidiary Solidigm is seen as a positive development. This news eases concerns about potential value discounts for the parent company due to overlapping listings, helping SK Hynix reduce its initial pre-market decline of over 3%.
Overnight on Wall Street, tech stocks faced a sell-off as investors worried about the investment burden in artificial intelligence (AI) companies. The Nasdaq Composite fell 2.60% and the S&P 500 dropped 1.21%. In contrast, defensive sectors like pharmaceuticals and consumer staples saw buying interest, nudging the Dow Jones Industrial Average up by 0.02%.
Meta Platforms Inc. (-6.98%) reported a negative free cash flow of 2.12 billion USD in Q3 and raised its capital expenditure outlook, intensifying concerns about its financial commitments. Tesla’s (-3.08%) reduced capital investment forecast also raised eyebrows about the sustainability of AI investments.
Memory chip stocks took a hit, with Micron Technology (-6.26%), SK Hynix ADR (-8.07%), and Western Digital (-8.51%) all plummeting. Other semiconductor giants like Nvidia (-4.40%), AMD (-8.10%), Intel Corporation (-8.04%), and Broadcom (-4.31%) also declined, driving the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index down by 6.72%.
Seo Sang-young, an executive director at Mirae Asset Securities, noted that while the Korean market has largely priced in AI investment concerns and foreign capital pressures, volatility may persist depending on foreign futures trading and selling pressure on semiconductor stocks.
During the same period, the NextTrade pre-market saw 566 stocks traded, with their total market capitalization decreasing by 2.61% compared to the reference price.