South Korea’s Kospi stock index is falling: Why AI chipmakers SK Hynix and Samsung are facing investor jitters

South Korea’s Kospi index extended its steep decline, falling another 6% and dropping more than 32% over the past month as investors grew nervous about the AI chip trade. The selloff was driven by heavy weakness in major semiconductor names SK Hynix and Samsung Electronics, both of which have been hit by concerns about over-investment in AI and disappointing earnings. SK Hynix reported second-quarter revenue of 79.32 trillion won, up 51% from the prior quarter, but still below consensus expectations, while operating profit also missed forecasts. The article suggests the weakness is not isolated to South Korea, with Nvidia and Micron also posting notable losses over the past week, reinforcing a broader reassessment of AI-linked chip valuations and sentiment across global equity markets.