SK Hynix Falls More Than 8% as Asian Chip Sell-Off Deepens

South Korean chip stocks and Japanese technology shares sank Thursday as investors weighed the cost of financing AI infrastructure and concerns about further Federal Reserve rate increases after a weak U.S. session.

SK Hynix fell more than 8% and Samsung Electronics dropped 7.1%. LG Innotek lost 8.1%, Seoul Semiconductor slid 7.7% and Samsung SDI declined 6.8%. In Japan, SoftBank Group fell 7.9% and Advantest lost 6.9%, while Tokyo Electron and Renesas Electronics each shed 5.4%.

Investors were concerned that higher borrowing costs could curb the large outlays needed to expand AI infrastructure. That could weigh on technology companies that have benefited from the AI investment boom.

The Asian declines followed a weaker U.S. session Wednesday, when hotter-than-expected inflation data heightened concerns that the Fed might raise rates further. The Nasdaq Composite finished down 1.88% at 26,692.87. The S&P 500 lost 1.11% to end at 7,718.94, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 0.09%.

The latest retreat follows an earlier Seoul chip-stock sell-off as investors reassessed AI valuations and semiconductor demand.