Asian stocks traded sharply lower at the time of writing, led by a more than 5% drop in South Korea’s KOSPI, while semiconductor heavyweights SK Hynix Inc. – ADR (NASDAQ:SKHY) and Samsung Electronics (OTC:SSNLF) also declined sharply.
Asian Markets Slide as Samsung, SK Hynix Tumble
South Korea’s KOSPI fell 5.50% to 6,492.22, extending losses across the benchmark as investors sold semiconductor stocks.
Shares of SK Hynix in Seoul dropped 7.82% to 1.532 million Korean won, while Samsung Electronics declined 6.33% to 251,500 won.
The sell-off also extended to U.S.-listed SK Hynix shares. The company’s American depositary receipt fell 9.20% to $155.62 in Tuesday’s U.S. session and was down another 1.38% at $153.47 in after-hours trading.
Meanwhile, Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell 2.42% to 65,826.62.
KOSPI Triggers Sell-Side Sidecar as Market Plunges 5%
The Korea Exchange activated a sell-side sidecar after the KOSPI 200 futures index fell sharply. Program trading in KOSPI-listed shares was suspended for five minutes at 9:06 a.m. local time, Yonhap News Agency reported.
A sell-side sidecar is triggered when KOSPI 200 futures fall at least 5% for one minute, temporarily slowing program trading during extreme market moves.
US Stock Futures Edge Lower as Oil Prices Climb
Dow futures fell 22.00 points, or 0.04%, to 53,381.00, while S&P 500 futures declined 3.75 points, or 0.05%, to 7,710.25. Nasdaq 100 futures slipped 47.25 points, or 0.16%, to 29,538.75 as of around 9:01 p.m. EDT.
In commodities, WTI crude oil rose 0.95% to $85.75 per barrel, while Brent crude gained 0.75% to $91.70 per barrel. Natural gas futures climbed 0.47% to $2.789 per MMBtu.
Meanwhile, the U.S. dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of currencies, stood at 99.661, up 0.02% on the day.
Trump Rules Out Iran Talks
On Tuesday, President Donald Trump said that there were no talks with Iran and none were scheduled.
“There are no talks or conversations going on, or scheduled, with the Islamic Republic of Iran,” Trump said in a Truth Social post.
He also said the U.S. naval blockade remained in force and stated that the Strait of Hormuz was “open and operating.”
US-Iran Tensions Fuel Oil and Inflation Fears
The 60-day U.S.-Iran memorandum expired Monday without a broader peace agreement. An Iranian official reportedly warned that Tehran could shift to a “fully offensive” posture if diplomatic efforts fail.
Back-channel diplomacy remains possible, with reports suggesting the Trump administration has reached out to figures linked to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps despite stalled formal negotiations.
Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
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