The benchmark KOSPI fell nearly 3% to around 6,610 on Tuesday, extending losses to its lowest level since late April amid renewed selling in heavyweight chipmakers. SK Hynix dropped about 8% after its US-listed shares slid 9.3% overnight, while Samsung Electronics declined more than 2%. Other major losers included SK Square (-5.9%), Hyundai Motor (-8.7%), LG Energy Solution (-3.4%), KB Financial Group (-2.4%), HD Hyundai Heavy Industries (-5.3%), Doosan Enerbility (-6.4%), and Hanwha Aerospace (-7.1%).
Retail investors were substantial net sellers, and overall market sentiment stayed cautious ahead of upcoming earnings reports from leading chipmakers and US technology firms, as investors looked for fresh signals on AI-driven demand and capital expenditure. In addition, heightened tensions in the Middle East—after the US reinstated a blockade of Iranian ports and President Donald Trump announced a 20% charge on cargo passing through the Strait of Hormuz—kept oil prices elevated and further weighed on global risk appetite.
