South Korean shares flat as chip gains balance broader weakness
- The benchmark KOSPI was down 5.34 points, or 0.08%, at 6,884.40
SEOUL: Round-up of South Korean financial markets:
South Korean shares were little changed on Tuesday as strength in semiconductor stocks offset weakness elsewhere, while investors awaited domestic trade data and US chipmaker Micron’s earnings for signals on AI-related chip demand.
The benchmark KOSPI was down 5.34 points, or 0.08%, at 6,884.40, as of 0143 GMT.
South Korean chipmakers Samsung Electronics rose 1.76% and SK Hynix gained 0.51%.
A Samsung executive said high-bandwidth memory (HBM) is expected to account for nearly 30% of Dynamic Random-Access Memory (DRAM) chipmakers’ total wafer capacity next year, up from about 20% currently.
US stocks fell overnight as higher oil prices and Treasury yields weighed on sentiment.
Investors are awaiting South Korea’s September trade data and Micron Technology’s earnings later this week for further clues on AI chip demand.
South Korea’s exports likely rose for a 16th consecutive month in September, supported by AI-driven chip demand, though growth is expected to have slowed due to fewer working days, a Reuters poll showed.
Most other index heavyweights declined, with battery maker LG Energy Solution down 3.16%, while Hyundai Motor and sister automaker Kia Corp fell 1.55% and 2.47%, respectively.
Shares of steelmaker POSCO Holdings shed 3%, while drugmaker Samsung BioLogics fell 2.36%.
Of the total 907 traded issues, 162 shares advanced, while 702 declined.
Foreigners were net sellers of shares worth 941.8 billion won ($692.50 million).
The won was quoted at 1,360.4 per dollar on the onshore settlement platform, 0.04% lower than its previous close at 1,359.9.
The most liquid three-year Korean treasury bond yield fell 1.6 basis points to 4.094%, while the benchmark 10-year yield fell 2.2 basis points to 4.522%.