Korean chip stocks fall on weaker-than-expected manufacturing index in U.S.

[Courtesy of SK hynix Inc.]

South Korean chip stocks lost ground on Wednesday morning amid re-emerging concerns about economic recession in the United States.

Shares of SK hynix Inc. fell 6.48 percent to 157,400 won as of 10:26 a.m. on Wednesday. The stock fell by more than 10,000 won from the previous day’s closing of 168,000 won.

Shares of Hanmi Semiconductor Co., a supplier of equipment to SK hynix, were also down 7.27 percent at 100,700 won

Samsung Electronics Co. shares dropped 2.76 percent to 70,500 won as of 10:28 a.m., edging close to the 70,000 won threshold.

The U.S. Institute for Supply Management (ISM) announced on Tuesday, local time, that its manufacturing purchasing managers index (PMI) rose to 47.2 in August from 46.8 in July.

The gain, however, fell short of market expectations.

The Nasdaq Composite slid 3.26 percent on Tuesday. Shares of Nvidia Corp. plunged 9.5 percent and those of Broadcom Inc. fell 6.2 percent and Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. lost 7.8 percent.

The Philadelphia SE Semiconductor index fell 7.8 percent.