The KOSPI opened lower despite record quarterly results from U.S. memory chipmaker Micron Technology. Although U.S. inflation data came in below market expectations, rising long-term Treasury yields weighed on investor sentiment, sending both Samsung Electronics and SK hynix down more than 1% in early trading.
The KOSPI opened at 6,814.49 on the 1st, down 23.55 points, or 0.34%, from the previous session, according to the Korea Exchange. The KOSDAQ started at 853.96, down 1.95 points, or 0.23%.
As of 9:03 a.m., Samsung Electronics (005930.KS) was trading at 265,500 won, down 3,000 won, or 1.12%, from the previous session. SK hynix (000660.KS) stood at 1,753,500 won, down 22,500 won, or 1.27%. SK Square (402340.KS) and Samsung Electro-Mechanics (009150.KS) also fell, by 3.51% and 3.17%, respectively. LG Energy Solution (373220.KS) lost 0.14%, KB Financial Group (105560.KS) 0.18% and Samsung Life Insurance (032830.KS) 0.89%, while Hyundai Motor (005380.KS) and Samsung Biologics (207940.KS) each gained 0.14%.
On Wall Street overnight, the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the Standard & Poor's 500 fell 0.86% and 0.25%, respectively. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite rose 0.24%. The MSCI Korea exchange-traded fund, a gauge of investor sentiment toward Korean equities, dropped 2.31%, while the emerging markets ETF fell 0.91%.
The U.S. personal consumption expenditures price index rose 3.4% in August from a year earlier, below the market consensus of 3.7%. Core PCE also came in lower than expected, lifting shares early in the session on views that the Federal Reserve was less likely to raise rates again in October. But stocks gave back most of those gains after the yield on the 10-year U.S. Treasury note topped 5.3% during the session. The 30-year yield also rose above 5.6%.
Higher oil prices added to the pressure. Brent crude for November delivery settled 0.92% higher at $103.53 a barrel, while West Texas Intermediate rose 1.16% to $90.42. "Concerns grew that the economy may not slow easily despite high interest rates, after the Chicago purchasing managers' index for September came in well above expectations," said Seo Sang-young, an executive director at Mirae Asset Securities (006800.KS). "We believe solid growth, high oil prices, corporate bond supply and supply-demand pressure in long-dated bonds drove yields higher."
Micron's results, released after the U.S. market close, beat expectations. The company posted record revenue of $54.23 billion (about 73.5 trillion won) for its fiscal fourth quarter covering June through August. That was nearly five times the figure a year earlier and exceeded the market consensus of $51.07 billion. Micron Chief Executive Sanjay Mehrotra said the company expects even stronger results in fiscal 2027.
"The premise that the market must cope with high interest rates for the time being has not changed, and what matters now is whether the market's earnings strength improves enough to withstand high rates," said Han Ji-young, an analyst at Kiwoom Securities (039490.KS). "With prolonged high rates now the market's base case, the pace of increases matters more than the level itself."
