Seoul chip rout sends Asian stocks to two-month low

BENGALURU: Emerging Asian equities hit two-month lows on Tuesday, dragged by a sharp selloff in South Korean chipmakers amid worries about rising Chinese competition, the durability of the AI-driven semiconductor rally and the impact of high borrowing costs.

The rout in South Korea’s heavyweight semiconductor sector reverberated across regional markets, with Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix together accounting for roughly 16 percent of the MSCI emerging Asia index.

KOSPI closed down 5.5 percent, its weakest finish since July 30, extending losses to nearly 14 percent over five consecutive sessions in the longest losing streak since September 2024.

The benchmark at one point slid 7.4 percent, triggering a “sidecar” trading curb that temporarily halted program trading. The junior KOSDAQ index ended 1.4 percent lower.

Asian chipmakers tracked overnight weakness on Wall Street, where memory-chip maker Micron Technology fell nearly 4 percent.

Elsewhere, Indonesian stocks slipped 0.4 percent and Philippine shares fell 0.9 percent, while Singapore bucked the trend, gaining 0.6 percent ahead of a monetary policy review on Wednesday, where the central bank is widely expected to tighten policy.

Among currencies, the South Korean won weakened as much as 0.8 percent, a day after hitting a two-year high. The Taiwan dollar fell nearly 1 percent to 32.21 per US dollar, its weakest level since mid-August.

The Indian rupee rose to a one-month high of 95.073 per dollar after fresh central bank measures aimed at easing pressure on the currency, alongside likely market intervention.