Korean chip stocks tumble with SK Hynix below US listing price amid China competition fears

South Korean chip stocks slumped on Tuesday, with Samsung Electronics 005930.KS and SK Hynix 000660.KS falling as much as 9.5% and 11.1%, respectively, as investors retreated from AI-related stocks amid mounting concerns over financing risks tied to AI infrastructure spending and intensifying competition from China.

SK Hynix's U.S.-listed shares had already slumped overnight, closing at $143.02, below their $149 initial public offering price.

The benchmark KOSPI .KS11 was trading down around 8% as of 0120 GMT.

Separately, a Wall Street Journal report that Nvidia could provide a roughly $250 billion financial backstop for an OpenAI data-centre project sent Nvidia shares down nearly 5%, with investors questioning the extent to which the AI chip leader may be financing its own customers.