Seoul stocks down over 5% late Fri. morning on tech losses amid AI concerns
The benchmark KOSPI is displayed at a dealing room of Hana Bank in Seoul, Friday. Yonhap
Korean stocks sank more than 5 percent late Friday morning, led by heavy losses in technology shares amid renewed concerns over the sustainability of the artificial intelligence (AI) boom.
After opening 2.99 percent lower, the benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) extended its losses, falling 311.84 points, or 5.25 percent, to 5,626.02 as of 11:20 a.m.
The sell-off followed overnight losses on Wall Street, where concerns over lofty AI-related valuations dampened investor sentiment.
As the market extended its decline, the Korea Exchange triggered a sell-side sidecar to suspend program trading for the KOSPI-listed shares for five minutes shortly after 10 a.m. The measure was activated for the first time in 11 trading days.
A sell-side sidecar is triggered when the KOSPI 200 Futures Index falls 5 percent or more for at least one minute.
KOSPI heavyweights traded lower.
Top market cap Samsung Electronics fell 6.03 percent, and chip giant SK hynix plunged 8.65 percent.
Leading automaker Hyundai Motor slipped 3.76 percent after lowering its annual sales target and investment plans amid a challenging business environment.
Defense firm Hanwha Aerospace slumped 12.24 percent after reporting weaker-than-expected third-quarter earnings due to delays in deliveries of K9 self-propelled howitzers to Poland.
The Korean won was trading at 1,337.8 won against the U.S. dollar as of 10:20 a.m., up 1.7 won from the previous session's close.