- Kospi plunged over 6% as tech shares sold off.
- US inflation, AI spending doubts triggered market decline.
- Samsung, SK Hynix led steep losses; won also weakened.
South Korean investors woke up on Thursday to a Wall Street session that had ended in the red, and Seoul’s market soon followed. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) fell sharply as a sell-off in major technology shares gathered pace, with doubts over the artificial intelligence (AI) trade and a fresh reading on US inflation weighing on sentiment, IANS reported.
By 11:20 AM, the Kospi had shed 404.21 points, or 6.73 per cent, to stand at 5,604.6, according to Yonhap news agency.
Kospi Trading Suspended for Five Minutes After Over 5% Drop
The slide was steep enough early in the session to prompt an intervention. After the index dropped more than 5 per cent in early trade, the country’s bourse operator suspended trading temporarily for five minutes, Yonhap reported.
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US CPI Up 0.6% in September, AI Spending Doubts Hit Wall Street
The trigger came from the other side of the Pacific. US stocks closed lower overnight as investors questioned whether the heavy spending on AI could be sustained, and as September consumer price data added to the unease, according to the report.
The US Consumer Price Index (CPI) for September rose 0.6 per cent from a month earlier, the fastest pace since April, official data released on Wednesday (US time) showed.
SK hynix Falls 9.87%, Samsung Electronics 7.87%
Tech heavyweights bore the brunt in Seoul. Samsung Electronics tumbled 7.87 per cent, while SK hynix fell 9.87 per cent, the steepest drop among the large-cap names cited.
The weakness was not confined to chipmakers. Most of the market’s top-capitalised stocks traded lower. Hyundai Motor, the industry leader in autos, fell 5.1 per cent, Hanwha Aerospace dipped 1.54 per cent and KB Financial slid 1.13 per cent.
There were few bright spots. Biotech firm Celltrion was among the rare gainers, rising 3.13 per cent.
The Korean currency also softened. The won was trading at 1,350 to the US dollar at 11:20 am, down 7.7 won from the previous session’s close.
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BOK Data: Household Loans Rise Just 0.6 Trillion Won in September
Separately, data from the Bank of Korea (BOK) released on Thursday showed that household borrowing from banks grew at its slowest pace in seven months in September. Tighter lending rules and higher interest rates were cited as factors behind the slowdown, according to the report.
Outstanding household loans from banks stood at 1,198.9 trillion won (about US$895.5 billion) last month, an increase of just 0.6 trillion won from August. That compares with a 3.5 trillion won rise in the previous month, and is the smallest monthly gain since March, when such loans rose by 0.5 trillion won.
Mortgage loans rose by 2.9 trillion won on the month to 955.5 trillion won, while other household loans fell by 2.3 trillion won to 242.6 trillion won, the central bank data showed.
Input By : IANS
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