Key Takeaways

• Sharp rebound: The KOSPI jumped 3.4% to 8,480.21 points, recovering a portion of Tuesday’s near-10% crash.
• Samsung surges 7-10%: Yonhap reported the company is preparing a share buyback worth nearly 90 trillion won ($5.8 billion) — the key catalyst for the recovery.
• SK Hynix rises 3.4%: A report confirming progress on a planned American Depository Receipt listing — which could attract significant new foreign capital — lifted shares.
• Both stocks nursing 12%+ losses: Wednesday’s gains only partially offset Tuesday’s devastating selloff in South Korea’s two largest companies.
• MSCI rejection stung: South Korea was denied consideration for developed market status by MSCI — one of the triggers for Tuesday’s rout.
• AI trade doubts compounded losses: Reports that SK Hynix is pivoting toward traditional memory from high-bandwidth memory products shook confidence in the AI supply chain narrative.
• Leveraged ETFs magnified the crash: Heavy selling in leveraged ETFs amplified Tuesday’s losses so severely that South Korea’s market watchdog head expressed regret over allowing their release last month.
• Still the world’s best performer: Despite Tuesday’s carnage, the KOSPI retains year-to-date gains of nearly 100% — making it the top-performing major index globally.
• AI boom the engine: Samsung and SK Hynix-led gains in tech and chipmaking drove the index’s extraordinary 2026 performance.

South Korea’s KOSPI index rose sharply on Wednesday, recouping a measure of steep losses from the prior session as chipmaking majors Samsung and SK Hynix also recovered ground.

The KOSPI jumped 3.4% to 8,480.21 points, trading below intraday highs of 8,577.52 points. The index had plummeted nearly 10% on Tuesday amid a major rout in chipmaking and technology shares.

Samsung’s $5.8 Billion Buyback Steals the Show

Samsung Electronics was a major boost to the index on Wednesday, surging between 7% and 10% after Yonhap reported the company was preparing a share buyback worth nearly 90 trillion won ($5.8 billion).

SK Hynix rose 3.4% following a report that it was progressing further with a planned listing of American Depository Receipts — a move that could attract significantly more foreign capital to the company.

Both stocks — the two largest companies in South Korea — were nursing deep losses of more than 12% each from the prior session.

What Caused Tuesday’s Rout

A storm of negative cues battered South Korean markets on Tuesday. These included the country’s rejection by MSCI for consideration as a developed market, and growing doubts over the artificial intelligence trade — which had driven stellar gains in local markets.

The concerns were amplified after a report said SK Hynix was planning to pivot more toward traditional memory products and away from the high-bandwidth memory it supplies to AI developers.

Market losses were further magnified by investors selling highly leveraged exchange-traded funds — so much so that the head of South Korea’s market watchdog expressed regret over allowing the release of these products last month.

Still the World’s Best Performer

Despite Tuesday’s losses, the KOSPI remained the best-performing stock index in the world, with year-to-date gains of nearly 100%.

The index was buoyed chiefly by tech and chipmaking stocks tied to AI, as investors piled into majors such as Samsung and SK Hynix amid signs of a major windfall from the fast-growing technology.