SK Hynix shares surged as much as 12% after the memory chipmaker unveiled plans for a $29 billion US listing, boosting hopes of higher valuations and greater foreign investor participation. The company plans to use the proceeds to expand capacity and acquire advanced chipmaking equipment. Rival Samsung also gained after Micron issued a strong sales forecast, lifting Koreas Kospi index.

SK Hynix plans to raise up to $33B through new ADRs targeting a US listing in August 2026, funding expansion of its AI-critical High Bandwidth Memory chips.

"A large part of the motivation behind this is no doubt the success of TSMC ADR which is very liquid, trades at a persistent premium to the Taiwan line and is accessed readily by…