South Korea shares tumble over 6% as chip selloff triggers trading curb

According to Business Recorder, South Korea's benchmark KOSPI index dropped more than 6% on Tuesday, which prompted a brief trading curb. The slump followed an overnight decline in US memory-chip maker Micron Technology, triggered by reports that China's ChangXin Memory Technologies had made fast technology gains. The Korea Exchange imposed a five-minute hold on programme selling shortly after 9:47 a.m. local time, once the KOSPI 200 futures index had slid 5.08%.

As of 0213 GMT, the index stood at 6,002.06 after shedding 382.18 points, or 5.93%. A fifth consecutive losing session would mark the longest such run since September 2024. Kang Jin-hyuk, an analyst at Shinhan Investment & Securities, linked the selling to worries that Chinese chip producers were catching up with established global competitors, a development that weighed on the tech-heavy market.

Samsung Electronics slipped 7.19% and SK Hynix fell 8.72%, while Hyundai Motor lost 5.78%, with LG Energy Solution, POSCO Holdings and Kia also lower. Overseas investors were net sellers worth 2,065.3 billion won, and the currency was priced at 1,338.8 per dollar, a 0.22% move from the earlier close of 1,335.8. The three-year Korean treasury yield eased 4.8 basis points to 3.874%, while the 10-year benchmark declined 6.9 basis points to 4.250%.