The AI trade giveth, and the AI trade taketh away. Asian equity markets got hammered in late June as investors decided the good times had lasted long enough and rushed to cash in profits from one of the year’s most aggressive tech rallies.
South Korea’s KOSPI, which had been celebrated as one of the world’s top-performing major indices in 2026, fell between 5.7% and 10% over several trading sessions from June 23 to 26. The selling was violent enough to activate circuit breakers, those automatic pause mechanisms designed to prevent markets from going into complete freefall.
The numbers tell a painful story
Japan’s Nikkei 225 didn’t escape the carnage, declining approximately 3.9% during the same period.
Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix each reported drops exceeding 6%. On some trading days, the declines were even more severe, with both stocks falling more than 12% in single sessions.
