Samsung Electronics Co. and SK hynix Inc. fell in early trading on Tuesday, tracking a sell-off in U.S. tech stocks. Shares of Samsung Electronics were down 0.65 percent at 228,500 won. The stock opened 0.22 percent lower at 229,500 won and briefly climbed as much as 1.09 percent to 232,500 won before turning lower again, with the decline subsequently narrowing.
Shares of SK hynix were trading at 1.394 million won, down 1.83 percent from the previous session. The stock opened 1.06 percent lower at 1.405 million won and briefly plunged 3.17 percent to 1.375 million won before recovering some of its losses.
The declines followed overnight declines in all three major U.S. stock indexes and a 2.94 percent drop in the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index, amid news that Microsoft is moving toward mass production of its own artificial intelligence chips. Shares of Nvidia Corp. fell 2.86 percent and Micron Technology Inc. dropped 1.89 percent.
Shares of Sandisk Corp. rose 2.12 percent after JPMorgan Chase & Co. issued a report forecasting that the imbalance between memory supply and demand will persist for at least two more years.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.11 percent, the S&P 500 declined 0.06 percent, and the Nasdaq Composite slipped 0.32 percent.
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NHN Corp. surged 15.09 percent to 48,050 won as of 9:29 a.m. after the gaming and technology company reported a sharp increase in second-quarter profit. Its operating profit rose 164 percent on year to 57.9 billion won, while revenue increased 25.3 percent to 757.9 billion won.
Cosmetics stocks also gained as investors turned their attention to the sector, which is expected to post strong second-quarter earnings. Cosmecca Korea Co. rose 14 percent to 108,300 won as of 9:16 a.m., after reporting a 39.3 percent increase in second-quarter operating profit to 32.1 billion won.
Analysts said the rotation into cosmetics and aesthetic medical-device stocks could continue if earnings expectations remain strong.
Park Jong-hyun, an analyst at Daol Investment & Securities Co., said, “If the rotation in trading continues, we expect sustained interest in the aesthetic medical device and cosmetics sectors, where earnings estimates are likely to be revised upward.”
LG Household & Health Care Co. advanced 1.09 percent, while Kolmar Korea Co. climbed 2.64 percent, and d’Alba Global Co. increased 3.11 percent.
