Kospi Plunges 6.45% as Chip Stocks and Oil Prices Weigh on Sentiment
The South Korean Kospi index plummeted 6.45% on Wednesday to 6,426 points, triggering a sell-side sidecar that paused program trading for five minutes at 9:06 a.m.
The sharp decline was led by chip stocks, with Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix driving the losses as their U.S.-listed shares fell significantly. SK Hynix's U.S.-shares dropped 9.20% to $155.62 in Tuesday's session and an additional 1.38% after-hours.
The rout was exacerbated by rising Brent crude prices, which gained 0.75% to $91.50 a barrel on Tuesday following the expiration of a 60-day U.S.-Iran memorandum without a new agreement. President Trump ruled out further talks with Iran, heightening risk-off sentiment that could spill into broader risk assets, including crypto and DeFi.