KOSPI falls in the 2% range on AI profitability concerns; Samsung Electronics and SK hynix both weaken [fn Morning Market Update]

[Financial News] The KOSPI is down more than 2% as concerns over the profitability of AI investments resurface. With Samsung Electronics and SK hynix falling in tandem amid overnight weakness in U.S. semiconductor stocks, the KOSDAQ has also slipped to the 720 level.
According to the Korea Exchange, as of 10:50 a.m. on the 3rd, the KOSPI was trading at 5,711.27, down 147.81 points (2.52%) from the previous trading day. After rising 2.24% the day before, the index is giving up those gains in a single day.
On the main board, retail investors are net buyers of KRW 1.6972 trillion, while foreign investors and institutions are net sellers of KRW 1.0263 trillion and KRW 686.2 billion, respectively.
By sector, medical and precision instruments (-5.12%), electrical and electronics (-3.44%), and machinery and equipment (-3.22%) are among the decliners. Entertainment and culture (1.36%), pharmaceuticals (0.95%), and paper and wood (0.77%), meanwhile, are rising.
Among the largest companies by market capitalization, Samsung SDI (-4.28%), Doosan Enerbility (-4.49%), Samsung Life Insurance (-3.86%), and SK Square (-3.58%) are among the decliners. Hanwha Aerospace (2.97%), Samsung Biologics (1.83%), and HD Hyundai Heavy Industries (0.87%), by contrast, are rising.
Large-cap semiconductor stocks are also falling in tandem. Samsung Electronics was trading at KRW 222,000, down KRW 7,000 (3.06%) from the previous trading day. SK hynix was at KRW 1,417,000, down KRW 55,000 (3.74%).
The KOSDAQ was trading at 720.65, down 13.71 points (1.87%) from the previous trading day. Retail investors were net buyers of KRW 2.505 trillion, while foreign investors and institutions were net sellers of KRW 135.4 billion and KRW 103.6 billion, respectively.
U.S. stocks closed mixed overnight as the investment costs and funding burdens of AI companies came into focus. News of Oracle's $20 billion stock and bond offering fueled concerns about the profitability of AI investments. Oracle fell 8.8%, while major semiconductor stocks including Micron (-5.78%), AMD (-7.52%), and Nvidia (-1.26%) also weakened.
Analysts say the market continues to demand evidence that AI companies can generate profits and secure funding as they pursue large-scale investments. However, international oil prices and U.S. Treasury yields have fallen amid hopes for negotiations between the United States and Iran, improving the macroeconomic conditions that had been adding to companies' borrowing costs.
Han Ji-young, a researcher at KIWOOM Securities Co., Ltd., said, “The market is likely to see divergent performance across sectors during the session as it digests uncertainty stemming from U.S. AI stocks,” adding, “Price corrections in AI stocks have already largely played out since October, and current macroeconomic conditions are less adverse than before.”
[email protected] Bae Han-geul Reporter