Korean equities have a central role in the AI trade because Samsung and SK hynix supply most of the memory it needs. Despite the shakeout, the KOSPI leads the major markets shown at roughly +36% this year. The bullish lean faces a flow warning: Korean semiconductor ETF 20-day flows fell from nearly +$4B in June to about -$703M by October 18 as the index approaches rising support. x.com  x.com  x.com  x.com  x.com 

Korean equities' July leverage-driven flush increasingly looks like exhaustion, not a failed AI thesis. The KOSPI rose 3.56% to 6,813, back in bull-market territory more than 20% above its July low, with Samsung up over 5% and SK hynix nearly 8% on reported sovereign-wealth interest and reaccelerating global AI capex. Korean semiconductor exports are running up 155% year over year in early August. x.com 

Retail leverage and AI concentration have fueled the Korean equities rout. The KOSPI fell more than 14% in a week, its worst weekly decline since 2008. Korean equities will fall further if the rout in SK hynix and Samsung continues, though some dip buyers may already be lining up. x.com  x.com 

SK hynix looks supported by memory demand sold out at least in 2027. Korean export figures, per unnamed sources, suggested earnings would not be too ugly. No one knows what happens after 2028, so stay flexible both ways. x.com 

Korean equities are probably going higher as Samsung and SK hynix move toward capital returns while memory fundamentals strengthen. Multiple banks share the Samsung capital-return thesis, SK hynix says returns are imminent, both cite strong demand and long-term agreements, and Apple says memory prices will rise a lot next quarter. With froth and leverage cleared and hyperscaler revenue accelerating, a healthier rally looks likely, depending partly on a reasonable Iran resolution. x.com  x.com  … Show more

Korean equities look like a leveraged mania in which money arrived faster than judgment, and borrowers may not survive the drawdown. Samsung and SK Hynix now make up over 54% of the KOSPI, up from 16% in 2016, and margin loans hit a record 36 trillion won, double a year ago, as Koreans surrendered insurance policies to buy stocks. On July 14 Samsung fell 10.70% and SK Hynix 15.37%, and the KOSPI sits near 6,750 from above 8,000. The businesses and the AI buildout remain real. x.com 

SK hynix's strong pricing and secured capacity could push memory stocks higher. Per Wall St Engine, its Q3 DRAM ASP rose by a high-20s percentage quarter over quarter, while long-term agreements cover more than half of its 2027-28 capacity. Those figures support the memory upcycle. x.com 

SK hynix should reprice strongly because its blowout earnings make the case that memory is structurally different now. At the current earnings pace, it would earn back its entire market cap in two years; buybacks and dividends also return cash to shareholders and add to value. x.com 

Korean equities get double-hit in a liquidity flush, when the dollar rises and everything else falls as investors raise cash at once. The stronger dollar creates a currency drag, and the AI memory premium in SK Hynix and Samsung reprices when the Nasdaq 100 drops 2.7%. A post the author replies to warns that Korea falling would hurt the memory trade in a big way. x.com 

SK hynix's 'insane' earnings set up a sharp move higher in the shares. x.com