South Korean shares post worst day in three months on tech rout

SEOUL: Round-up of South Korean financial markets:

South Korean shares fell on Thursday to mark their worst session in three months, as heavyweight chipmakers tracked a sell-off in global tech stocks, with Nvidia supplier SK Hynix posting its biggest drop in more than four years.

The benchmark KOSPI closed down 48.06 points, or 1.74%, at 2,710.65. It was the biggest daily fall since April 25.

South Korea’s economy unexpectedly shrank in the second quarter, as slumping consumer spending undermined an export boom.

Chipmakers dragged the benchmark index lower, after U.S. peer Nvidia dropped 7% overnight.

“Investors sold tech stocks on doubts over the profitability of artificial intelligence,” said Na Jeong-hwan, an analyst at NH Investment Securities.

South Korean shares end lower as Samsung Electronics falls

SK Hynix fell 8.87% to post its worst day since March 18, 2020, even after it posted the highest quarterly profit in six years. Rival Samsung Electronics fell 1.95%.

Battery makers reversed early losses. They had fallen sharply in recent days on bets of Donald Trump’s win in this year’s U.S. presidential election.

Battery maker LG Energy Solution (LGES) said potential change in U.S. policies after November’s presidential election could further weaken demand for electric vehicles. It said it expected a more than 20% drop in this year’s revenue.

LGES ended up 3.42%, while peers Samsung SDI and SK Innovation rose 3% and 0.67%, respectively.

LG Display fell 4.32%, even as the flat-screen maker narrowed losses in the second quarter.

Foreigners were net sellers of shares worth 672.5 billion won ($485.75 million).

The won was quoted at 1,385.4 per dollar on the onshore settlement platform, 0.40% lower than its previous close at 1,379.9.

The most liquid three-year Korean treasury bond yield fell by 2.6 basis points to 3.024%, while the benchmark 10-year yield fell by 0.5 basis point to 3.125%.