Heavyweights Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix, which together account for more than half of Kospi's market cap, fell around 9% each on Friday, forcing the exchange to trigger circuit breakers and halt trading for roughly 20 minutes.

Kospi index sinks 10% after regulatory warnings over leveraged ETFs spark forced selling in chip heavyweights

South Korea's KOSPI index plunged nearly 10% as SK Hynix and Samsung sell-off triggers circuit breakers, raising doubts about AI-driven stock valuations.