Samsung, SK hynix rise 1% after Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang resigns

By Elena Vasquez

Samsung Electronics (005930.KS) and SK hynix (000660.KS) rose more than 1% in pre-market trading on the 13th, despite Nvidia Chief Executive Jensen Huang’s resignation. The local gains contrasted with declines in Nvidia and other AI-related stocks in the United States.

What did Samsung and SK hynix trade at?

As of 8:10 a.m. on Nextrade (NXT), Samsung traded at 212,000 won, up 4,000 won from the previous session, a gain of 1.92%. SK hynix reached 1.273 million won, adding 19,000 won, or 1.52%.

SK hynix’s American depositary receipts fell 3.19% in the U.S. the previous day. That left the local shares and their New York-listed counterpart moving in opposite directions.

How far did Nvidia fall?

Nvidia closed at $166.19 on the 12th, down 4.34%, after opening more than 13% lower and falling more than 14% at one point. The stock then pared its losses.

Nvidia’s market capitalization slipped below $4 trillion during the session, the first time it had done so since July 2025. Other AI-related stocks also lost ground:

• Super Micro Computer fell 11.30%.
• CoreWeave fell 6.86%.
• The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index lost 0.54%.

Huang had led Nvidia for 33 years before resigning that day amid a series of extramarital affair scandals. Nvidia named Chief Financial Officer Colette Kress as interim CEO, and Wall Street firms cut their price targets on Nvidia one after another.

AMD and Broadcom rose 5.86% and 5.54%, respectively. Investors expected Nvidia’s customers to broaden their chip supply sources, which supported both rivals.

What hit U.S. equities overnight?

Huang’s resignation and a surge in oil prices pressured U.S. stocks overnight. The declines extended across the main benchmarks:

• The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed down 0.36% at 52,297.09 on the 12th.
• The Standard & Poor’s 500 fell 0.35% to 7,592.40.
• The Nasdaq Composite dropped 0.39% to 25,366.09.

How limited is the downside for South Korea?

Market participants said Huang’s departure could weigh on South Korean stocks, though they expected losses to stay limited. Kiwoom Securities analyst Han Ji-young said: “Nvidia has already plunged nearly 11% over four trading sessions this week since the scandal broke, so the stock appears to have priced in most of the negative news.”

He added: “Despite external pressures such as rising interest rates and oil prices, bargain hunting will limit the downside for the local index.” For local-market investors, the immediate contrast was clear: Samsung and SK hynix gained more than 1% in pre-market trading while Nvidia’s U.S.-listed shares closed 4.34% lower.

The session also showed investors expecting a broader chip supply mix, with AMD and Broadcom advancing as customers could broaden their sourcing. The open question is whether Huang’s exit changes customer sourcing or mainly accelerates those expectations.

The early Korean trading showed no broad sell-off in the two shares. Han’s forecast, however, still depended on bargain hunting offsetting higher interest rates and oil prices.