S,Koreas KOSPI Craters over 8 as Fed Fears Spark Tech Rout

KOSPI falls 8.3, triggering circuit breakers Chipmakers Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix tumble Robust U.S. payrolls data sparks rout in tech stocks Authorities hold emergency meeting after won hits 17year low SEOUL, June 8 Reuters South Korea39;s stock benchmark plunged over 8 on Monday, tripping circuit breakers, after robust U.S. jobs data lifted bets on a Federal Reserve rate hike and unleashed a selloff in the techheavy market that had powered the broader AI rally. The KOSPI fell 8.3 to close at 7,484.41, marking its biggest daily fall since March 4. The index is now 15 below the peak of 8,801.49 hit on June 2. Chip heavyweight Samsung Electronics tumbled 10.2, and peer SK Hynix dropped 7.7 even as Nvidia39;s CEO, Jensen Huang, said SK Hynix remained its biggest partner while unveiling new deals during his trip to South Korea. The two South Korean chipmakers have been the driving force behind the index39;s worldbeating surge, buoyed by record profits. Their market capitalisations this year alone have jumped more than 150 and 200, respectively, now accounting for over half of the benchmark and propelling them into the 1 trillion club. Circuit breakers were activated on the benchmark index soon after the market opened, halting trading for 20 minutes for the first time in three months, followed by another sidecar curb. It was the third time circuit breakers were triggered this year, and the ninth in history. The won rallied more than 1 to 1,533.7 per dollar,...