Original Coverage & Source Attribution: www.mk.co.kr
Semiconductor stocks are plunging due to concerns over profitability of artificial intelligence (AI) investments.
As of 9:30 a.m. on the 23rd, Samsung Electronics was trading at 207,000 won, down 7,500 won (3.50 percent) from the previous day.
At the same time, SK Hynix is trading at 1,199,000 won, down 24,000 won (1.96%) from the previous day.
In the case of SK Hynix, it announced the suspension of the review before the opening of the regular market in connection with the controversy over the listing of its grand-subsidiary Solidigm on the U.S. stock market, which has been a burden on the stock price, but it seems that it is not enough to rebound the falling stock price.
In addition, semiconductor-related stocks such as Samsung C&T (-3.47%), Samsung Electronics (-2.57%), and Hanmi Semiconductor (-2.56%) are also weak.
In addition to large semiconductor stocks, semiconductor small managers (-6.96%), Wonik IPS (-6.22%), Reno Industrial (-5.61%) and Eotechnics (-3.78%) in the KOSDAQ market are also falling one after another.
This is interpreted as a result of the decline in technology stocks as concerns about the profitability of AI investment are repeated in the U.S. stock market following the domestic stock market.
Investor sentiment was sharply dampened by rising concerns over how to raise the cost of an astronomical AI investment and make corresponding profits in the wake of earnings reports from major tech companies.
In particular, as Meta’s free cash flow in the third quarter recorded a deficit for the first time since listing, concerns spread that the burden of AI investment may exceed the company’s ability to generate cash.
Han Ji-young, a researcher at Kiwoom Securities, said, “The recent AI funding controversy seemed to be limited to neo-cloud companies such as Coreweave, which is highly dependent on borrowing, but there is a growing concern that it will spread to big tech and hyperscaler companies such as Meta.”
