US 10-year yield tops 5.3%, highest since 2002

Foreign, institutional investors sell; retail buyers snap up 390 billion won

Samsung Electronics, SK hynix slip despite Micron's record earnings

The trading board at Hana Bank's headquarters in Jung-gu, Seoul, displays real-time Kospi and Kosdaq readings alongside the won-dollar exchange rate as the benchmark index opens lower Thursday. [Yonhap]
The trading board at Hana Bank's headquarters in Jung-gu, Seoul, displays real-time Kospi and Kosdaq readings alongside the won-dollar exchange rate as the benchmark index opens lower Thursday. [Yonhap]

Record earnings from US memory chip maker Micron Technology failed to lift South Korean stocks Thursday as surging US Treasury yields and crude oil prices weighed on sentiment. The Kospi fell for a fourth consecutive session, slipping to the 6,800 level in early trading amid simultaneous selling by foreign and institutional investors.

The Kospi opened down 23.55 points, or 0.34 percent, at 6,814.49, according to Korea Exchange, and struggled to regain momentum as it continued to hover in the low 6,800s.

The decline was led by foreign and institutional investors, who were net sellers of 300 billion won ($221 million) and 100 billion won, respectively, while retail investors absorbed the selling pressure with net purchases of 390 billion won.

Rising crude oil prices and US Treasury yields appeared to be dampening investor appetite, offsetting the boost that might otherwise have come from Micron's strong results.

The yield on the 10-year US Treasury note surpassed 5.3 percent during trading overnight, its highest level since May 2002. The 30-year yield also broke above 5.6 percent, a level not seen since June 2002.

Oil prices also rebounded, with November-delivery Brent crude rising 0.92 percent and November-delivery West Texas Intermediate advancing 1.16 percent.

Micron posted record quarterly and annual earnings, but the results could not overcome the headwind from higher interest rates. The company disclosed that revenue for its fiscal fourth quarter, covering June through August, reached $54.23 billion — roughly five times the year-earlier figure and an all-time high.

"We expect even stronger performance in fiscal year 2027," Micron CEO Sanjay Mehrotra said, signaling confidence that the company's growth trajectory would continue.

On Wall Street, which closed before Micron's earnings release, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.86 percent and the S&P 500 slipped 0.25 percent, while the tech-heavy NASDAQ Composite edged up 0.24 percent.

Samsung Electronics and SK hynix were each down between 0.5 and 0.8 percent. Among other large-cap stocks, Hyundai Motor rose 0.43 percent, Samsung Biologics gained 0.22 percent, KB Financial Group added 0.12 percent, and Hanwha Aerospace climbed 1.49 percent, while SK Square fell 3.69 percent, Samsung Electro-Mechanics dropped 3.11 percent, and LG Energy Solution slipped 0.42 percent.

The Kosdaq was mixed. The index opened down 1.95 points, or 0.23 percent, at 853.96 before gradually recovering and briefly turning positive during the session. Foreign and retail investors were net buyers of 8 billion won and 40 billion won, respectively, while institutions were net sellers of 20 billion won.

Among Kosdaq's top-cap stocks, Ecopro and Jusung Engineering were each up between 0.22 and 0.25 percent, locked in a battle for the second-largest market cap slot. Semiconductor materials, components and equipment stocks were broadly stronger — Wonik IPS surged 3.35 percent, HPSP jumped 3.30 percent, PSK rose 2.69 percent, and EO Technics gained 1.73 percent.


th5@heraldcorp.com