South Korea's KOSPI Falls 1.91% Amid Five-Week Semiconductor Decline, as $950B AI Cooperation Deal Emerges

According to SK Securities, South Korea's KOSPI index fell 1.91% to 6,690.62 as of late July 27, amid five consecutive weeks of semiconductor stock weakness. Semiconductor shares had dropped 5.72% on July 24, with futures posting further declines of 2.8% after market close. High volatility persisted, with circuit breakers triggered for 10 consecutive trading days.

Countering AI investment peak-out concerns, a $950 billion AI and semiconductor cooperation agreement between domestic companies and global tech giants was announced at the San Francisco AI Summit on July 24. Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix futures in crypto markets were trading 1-2% higher than domestic closing prices on July 24, according to SK Securities analyst Jo Jun-gi. Key catalysts this week include earnings reports from SK Hynix (July 29) and Samsung Electronics (July 30), alongside results from Microsoft, Meta, Amazon, and Apple.