South Korean equities fell sharply, dragged down by heavyweight chipmakers, following an overnight selloff in US technology shares triggered by rising oil prices.
The Kospi index dropped as much as 3.1% on Friday, heading toward a fourth consecutive weekly decline. Samsung Electronics Co Ltd and SK Hynix Inc both fell more than 2% in early trading. Japan's Nikkei 225 index slipped as much as 0.6%.
Recently, Korean stocks have faced multiple headwinds, with growing market concerns over whether massive AI investments can be sustained and whether financing costs will keep climbing.
The benchmark index has fallen about 20% so far this month, making it the worst-performing major stock market globally in October. This not only highlights its heavy concentration in AI-related shares but also reflects investors' fluctuating sentiment toward the sector.
Jung In Yun, CEO of Fibonacci Asset Management Global, said the market is beginning to question how long it will take for massive AI capital expenditure to translate into stable cash flow, while rising oil prices add further uncertainty. Market sentiment is currently extremely fragile, with investors broadly favoring capital preservation over bargain hunting.
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