PiCK
Kospi Opens Lower as Oil Surges, US Yields Rise; Chip Stocks Drop 4%
Summary
- The Kospi traded lower early in the session as a surge in international oil prices and rising US Treasury yields weighed on sentiment.
- Samsung Electronics, SK Hynix and other large-cap semiconductor stocks, along with related chip names, moved lower together with losses of 3% to 5%.
- Exports and semiconductor exports for September 1-10 rose 82.6% and 270.1%, respectively, setting a record high for the period.
Forecast Trend Report by Period
South Korea’s Kospi traded lower early Friday as a surge in oil prices and rising US Treasury yields weighed on investor sentiment. Selling was concentrated in large-cap semiconductor stocks, which are sensitive to interest rates.
As of 9:07 a.m. on September 11, Samsung Electronics was down 3.81% from the previous session at 258,750 won. SK Hynix fell 4.05% to 1.778 million won. Other chip-related stocks also declined, with Samsung Electronics preferred shares down 4.29% and SK Square off 4.93%.
The pressure came after both international oil prices and US Treasury yields jumped overnight. West Texas Intermediate crude for October delivery settled 6.69% higher at $102.48 a barrel on September 10. Brent crude for November delivery rose 6.34% to $107.63 a barrel.
The yield on the 10-year US Treasury note rose above 4.95% intraday, reaching its highest level since October 2023. Adding to the pressure, the US producer price index for August remained elevated, bringing renewed focus to the possibility of a benchmark rate increase at the next Federal Open Market Committee meeting.
Export data, however, remained solid. According to the Korea Customs Service, exports for September 1-10 totaled $35 billion, up 82.6% from a year earlier and the highest ever for that period.
Semiconductor exports jumped 270.1% to $16.483 billion. Their share of total exports also expanded to 47.1%, up 23.9 percentage points from a year earlier.
