In early trading on the 26th, Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix, South Korea's leading semiconductor stocks, are showing weakness together. Despite U.S. memory company Micron presenting better-than-expected earnings and a positive outlook, investor sentiment shrank as overnight mixed trading on the New York Stock Exchange and profit-taking following recent steep gains overlapped.

As of 9:39 a.m. on this day, Samsung Electronics is trading at 345,000 won, down 13,500 won (3.77%) from the previous trading day. At the same time, SK Hynix also continues its weakness, recording 2,784,000 won, down 133,000 won (4.56%).

The mixed performance in the U.S. stock market has dealt a direct blow to domestic semiconductor stocks. Despite growing expectations for an improvement in the memory industry driven by Micron's strong earnings, the overnight New York Stock Exchange showed divergent trends across indices. Based on expanding demand for AI server memory, Micron announced earnings and guidance that exceeded market expectations. However, as some large-cap tech stocks including Apple showed weakness, the Nasdaq and S&P 500 indices declined, and only the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed higher.

Stocks that had recently enjoyed significant gains driven by AI semiconductor expectations are undergoing price corrections as a flood of sell orders aimed at locking in short-term profits has poured in. In terms of supply and demand, continued selling by foreigners and institutions is adding downward pressure on large-cap semiconductor stocks.

The market positively evaluates that Micron's earnings have reaffirmed the recovery trend in the global memory market. However, some analysts note that wariness over U.S. inflation and interest rate outlooks, along with corrections in large-cap tech stocks, are dampening short-term investor sentiment and acting as a burden on domestic semiconductor stocks. There are also forecasts that short-term volatility may expand given the increased price burden from recent steep gains.

Nevertheless, the market consensus is that expectations for an improvement in the memory industry remain valid, as AI data center investment expansion and high-bandwidth memory (HBM) demand growth are expected to continue in the mid to long term. Key variables that will determine the future stock price trends of Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix are cited as U.S. inflation trends, the Federal Reserve's monetary policy, and changes in foreign investor supply and demand.

[This article was written with the assistance of AI. This article is not a recommendation to invest, and any losses resulting from investments are the responsibility of the investor.]