Samsung and SK Hynix tumble as tech selloff hits Asia

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Samsung and SK Hynix tumble

Highlights

SK Hynix fell 11.53%, while Samsung lost 8.77%.
The drop followed losses in U.S. chip stocks.
Investors took profits after a long AI rally.
HBM demand remains strong, but valuations are under pressure.

SK Hynix closed at 1,842,000 won, down 240,000 won, or 11.53%, while Samsung Electronics fell 8.77% to 255,000 won, according to market data shown Thursday. The declines came as Asian semiconductor stocks tracked overnight losses on Wall Street, where Micron, Intel, Lam Research, and AMD all fell, CNBC reported.

Korea chip shares lead the retreat

SK Hynix reversed the previous session’s rally and extended a volatile stretch following its U.S. listing last week. The move came after investors took profits from one of the strongest AI memory trades in Asia.

The pressure spread across South Korea’s technology sector. Seoul Semiconductor dropped 5.31% to 9,090 won, while LG Innotek lost 2.91% and Samsung SDI fell more than 4%. The Kospi was dragged lower as semiconductor names, which had driven much of the market’s recent strength, became the center of selling.

The decline was not limited to Korea. In Japan, Advantest fell 5.93% to 29,640 yen, while SoftBank Group slid 6.27%. Tokyo Electron lost more than 4%, and Renesas Electronics declined 7%.

U.S. selloff tests AI enthusiasm

The regional rout followed losses in U.S. chip stocks. Micron sank 8%, Intel lost more than 4%, and Lam Research and AMD each fell about 3%.

Rolf Bulk, head of semiconductor and infrastructure equity research at Futurum Group, said the Asian decline was largely a follow-on from the U.S. session. He pointed to concerns around a proposed moratorium on large-scale data centers in New York and reports that CoreWeave was exploring hedges against future declines in memory prices as negative signals.

Still, Bulk said the weakness looked more like profit-taking after a sharp rally than a breakdown in industry fundamentals. Demand for high-bandwidth memory remains strong as cloud providers continue to expand AI infrastructure, supporting pricing power for leading memory suppliers such as SK Hynix and Micron.

AI trade faces a valuation test

The selloff came despite stronger signals from ASML, which raised its full-year sales forecast for a second time this year on demand for advanced chipmaking equipment. That suggests the AI hardware cycle remains active, even as investors question how much optimism is already reflected in share prices.

Louis Kondratev, a trader at XFUNDs, said semiconductor stocks have become a large and crowded part of the broader market. He noted that semiconductors now make up roughly 20% of the S&P 500, far above their historical range of 2% to 5%. That concentration makes the sector more vulnerable when investors reassess valuations, even if earnings momentum remains solid.

We have previously highlighted that the Bank of Korea raises rates to 2.75% as inflation pressure returns.

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