SEOUL, June 24, 2026, 18:39 KST
Foreign investors dumped about $8.6 billion of Korean and Taiwan stocks on Wednesday, while the KOSPI jumped 3.3% in Seoul. The bounce was led by Korean buyers. Overseas investors offloaded a net 4.66 trillion won ($3.0 billion), about 8.7% of market turnover, with local retail and instituionals picking up 4.55 trillion won. In Taiwan, foreign investors sold a record NT$177.42 billion ($5.6 billion), 12.2% of turnover. TSMC slid 4.02%, dragging the Taiex down by about 76% of its 1,057-point loss. “TSMC just fell victim to such profit-taking,” Cathay Futures analyst Tsai Ming-han said. The foreign outflows show that Seoul’s pop wasn’t a sign of risk appetite coming back. Yonhap News
KOSPI ended at 8,471.02 after plunging 9.99% on Tuesday. That puts the index 7.1% under Monday’s all-time high of 9,114.55. Samsung Electronics climbed 9.84% and SK Hynix tacked on 0.98%, but Samsung stayed about 3.7% beneath Monday’s close following Tuesday’s 12.3% drop. Patrick Munnelly, market strategist at Tickmill Group, said investors are starting to wonder if the semiconductor rally has “run too high.” AP News
Samsung shares rallied after Yonhap said the company is planning a share buyback of about 90 trillion won ($58.6 billion). The chipmaker is coming off wage negotiations that included stock bonuses for staff, according to unnamed industry sources in the report. Samsung hasn’t replied to Reuters’ requests for comment. Workers can sell a third of those bonus shares right away, which may counter some of the buyback.
Samsung and SK Hynix now make up over half of the KOSPI’s market value. Leveraged single-stock ETFs—meant to amplify moves in one name—came out last month. Margin debt hit a record in June as money borrowed to buy shares jumped. “Volatility has blown out,” said Alexander Redman, chief equity strategist at CLSA, linking the swings to busy retail trading. Reuters
Japan’s Nikkei 225 dropped 0.88%, while the semiconductor index gave up 1.26%. The Nikkei volatility index shot up 26.64%. But the Nikkei Asia300 in dollar terms was just off 0.06%. Markets in Hong Kong rose 0.33%, Shanghai moved up 0.11%. Big price swings inside markets with heavy chip exposure didn’t show up in the regional index moves.
Chip stocks are crowded, with little cushion if earnings miss. Bank of America says 80% of fund managers now call “long semiconductors” the most crowded trade. Micron Technology is up after the bell, with Wall Street focused on its guidance and news on supply contracts with major buyers. Reuters
Dollar hit a one-year high versus top currencies and the yen dropped to around 161.70 per dollar. Oil fell over 1%, holding near four-month lows. “When markets move so rapidly, in either direction, it’s a sign of instability,” Michael McCarthy, market analyst at Moomoo Securities Australia, said. Reuters
But if Micron misses or if the U.S. PCE inflation data pushes up rate outlooks, the bounce might not hold. Foreign outflows could face weaker buying at home, with big chip stock weights dragging the index down further. “The trade has been highly concentrated and flow-driven,” Ross Mayfield, an investment strategy analyst at Baird, said. “That makes it vulnerable to relatively small shifts in sentiment.” Reuters
