# South Korea’s Kospi stock index is falling: Why AI chipmakers SK Hynix and Samsung are facing investor jitters

> Source: <https://www.fastcompany.com/91581598/kospi-stock-crash-why-sk-hynix-samsung-down-ai-fears>
> Published: 2026-07-29 12:06:00+00:00

It’s no secret that investors are [getting nervous](https://www.fastcompany.com/91580922/chip-stocks-down-today-why-micron-sandisk-intel-keep-falling-ai) about [AI](https://www.fastcompany.com/section/artificial-intelligence), leaving chipmakers’ shares struggling.

Wednesday brought further evidence with South Korea’s Kospi (Korea Composite Stock Price Index) falling another 6%. The stock index is down over 32% in just the last month.

The significant decline follows poor performance from two of the Kospi Index’s biggest stocks: SK Hynix Inc. (KSE: 000660.KS) and Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. (KSE: 005930.KS).

The two chip manufacturers have struggled recently as [over-investment becomes a growing fear](https://www.fastcompany.com/91551762/stock-market-ai-bubble-recent-warning-sign-sp-500-mag-seven) in the AI world.

SK Hynix closed over 9.6% down after falling more than 19% during the day. Its shares are down more than 45% in the last month.

Samsung had fallen more than 5.2% at close and is down over 35% in a month.

Shares of SK Hynix also took a hit after the company failed to meet analysts’ expectations. On Wednesday, the company [announced](https://news.skhynix.com/en/q2-2026-business-results/) its second-quarter results, including 79.32 trillion won ($54.64 billion) in revenue.

While it was a 51% jump from last quarter, it fell short of predictions for $84 trillion won ($57.86 billion), according to consensus estimates [cited by CNBC](https://www.cnbc.com/2026/07/29/sk-hynix-earnings-profit-revenue-hbm-memory.html).

Operating profit also came in lower than expected, with a reported 60.54 trillion won ($41.70 billion) compared to 64 trillion won ($44.10 billion).

Outside of South Korea, chip manufacturers such as Nvidia Corporation and Micron Technology have also had tough weeks.

Over the last five days, Nvidia’s shares (Nasdaq: NVDA) fell 7.1% and Micron’s dropped 14.48%.