SK Hynix stock drops 9.5% as AI chip selloff hits South Korea

SK Hynix stock plunged 9.5% to ₩1,144,000 on Friday, extending a two-day rout driven by a global selloff in AI and semiconductor shares, triggered by U.S. Democratic election wins. The Democratic Party securing control of both Senate and House stoked fears of tighter oversight on AI data centers and energy use, threatening demand for SK Hynix’s high-bandwidth memory. Separately, U.S. export license delays for chipmaking equipment to its China NAND facilities compounded concerns. The KOSPI index fell over 8% at the open, triggering a circuit breaker, while the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index crashed 12.25% overnight. Foreign investors dumped 1.5 trillion won in the prior session, with Samsung Electronics also tumbling sharply.