SEOUL, July 02 (AJP) - South Korean stocks led Asia's selloff on Thursday as another wave of panic over artificial intelligence and semiconductor valuations rattled investors, dragging the benchmark KOSPI below the 8,000 mark and the junior KOSDAQ below 900.
The benchmark KOSPI tumbled 7.89 percent to close at 7,648.09, its first finish below 8,000 in 15 trading sessions. The index opened down 4.46 percent at 7,933.10, briefly recovered above 8,100 during the session, but selling accelerated into the close, sending it to an intraday low of 7,616.33.
The KOSDAQ extended its losses, falling 6.74 percent to 866.72, closing below the 900 level for the first time in four trading sessions.
The rout followed another steep overnight decline in U.S. semiconductor shares, reinforcing concerns that the AI-driven rally that propelled global markets to record highs may be losing momentum.
Chipmakers bore the brunt of the selling.
Samsung Electronics plunged 9.06 percent to 286,000 won, SK hynix slumped 14.57 percent to 2.187 million won, SK Square dropped 13.20 percent to 1.525 million won and Samsung Electro-Mechanics fell 12.65 percent to 192,600 won.
The weakness spread across much of the broader market. Samsung Electronics preferred shares fell 7.73 percent to 188,700 won, Samsung C&T lost 6.34 percent to 406,500 won, Hyundai Motor slipped 1.13 percent to 482,000 won and HD Hyundai Heavy Industries declined 4.07 percent to 590,000 won.
Not all blue chips joined the selloff.
KB Financial rose 4.10 percent to 165,000 won, Kia gained 2.61 percent to 145,200 won, LG Energy Solution advanced 1.72 percent to 354,000 won and Samsung Biologics edged up 0.72 percent to 1.406 million won.
Hanwha Aerospace was another standout.
The defense contractor climbed as much as 6.69 percent before ending the session up 2.29 percent at 1.116 million won after increasing its stake in Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI).
Hanwha's combined holding in KAI rose to 11.21 percent, making it the aerospace company’s second-largest shareholder. Investors viewed the purchase as part of Hanwha's strategy to strengthen its position in South Korea's aerospace industry, while buying by the National Pension Service and expectations for robust overseas defense orders also supported the shares.
The risk-off mood spread across much of Asia.
Japan's Nikkei 225 fell 2.33 percent to 68,831.00 as semiconductor shares came under pressure, with chip-equipment maker Tokyo Electron dropping 5.6 percent. China's Shanghai Composite Index lost 2.03 percent to 4,028.90.
Hong Kong, however, bucked the regional trend. The Hang Seng Index rose 0.42 percent to 22,977.00 after reopening from Wednesday's public holiday, supported by an 8.7 percent surge in Chinese electric-vehicle maker BYD following its second consecutive month of sales growth.
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