Nikkei 225 Falls 0.12% as Kospi Drops 0.60%, SK Hynix Slides Nearly 5%

The Nikkei 225 fell 0.12% on Friday, August 7, 2026, extending a volatile weekly pattern. South Korea’s Kospi dropped 0.60%, reversing an earlier intraday gain of 1.85%. SK Hynix slid nearly 5%, leading a renewed semiconductor selloff across both markets. This marks the third directional swing this week for regional chip stocks.

Nikkei 225 and Kospi Today: A Volatile Session Reverses Course

Friday’s Kospi opened 1.1% higher at 6,365.07 points, briefly touching a session high of 6,412.76. Sellers then took control, dragging the index down toward the 0.60% decline level.

• Kospi’s Thursday close: 6,296.39 points
• Friday’s intraday high: 6,412.76 points, up 1.85%
• Friday’s closing move: down 0.60%

The Nikkei 225 followed a similar reversal pattern throughout Friday’s trading session. Japan’s benchmark had closed at 65,683.26 on Thursday, itself down 0.93% from Wednesday’s level.

🇯🇵🇰🇷 Asia Closes Red—But Not Equally | August 7, 2026
（📍Data From https://t.co/RYgy8JQKI2 Daily Report）

Japanese and South Korean equities ended Friday slightly lower, but the headline indices hid a much sharper split inside the chip trade.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 slipped 0.12%,… pic.twitter.com/t8HegIMNJ5

— Alpha Observer (@AlphawalkAi) August 7, 2026

SK Hynix Leads Semiconductor Selloff Again

SK Hynix sank 4.82% Friday, continuing its multi-day whipsaw pattern across Korean trading. The stock had plunged 10.37% Thursday before rebounding sharply just one day earlier.

• SoftBank Group slid 3.69% Friday, pressuring the broader Nikkei 225
• Samsung Electronics also weakened alongside its chip-sector peer
• Kioxia extended losses after Thursday’s steep 10.24% decline

This volatility follows SK Hynix’s unit Solidigm exploring a Nasdaq listing, targeting a valuation above $35 billion. Investors remain focused on memory chip demand trends amid broader AI infrastructure spending concerns.

Memory Chip Stocks Face Multi-Day Whipsaw

Wednesday saw SK Hynix surge 5.77%, Samsung gain 2.50%, and SoftBank rally 13.96% on strong earnings. That rally reversed completely by Thursday, only to swing Friday morning again before fading late.

What’s Driving This Cross-Market Correlation

The Tokyo Stock Exchange reports Kospi and Nikkei 225 have moved together on 85% of trading days this year. That compares to just a 58% correlation between June 2025 and early August 2026.

• Nikkei 225’s intraday volatility has topped 2% for three straight months
• That marks the first such stretch since the 2008 financial crisis
• Leveraged single-stock ETFs tracking Samsung and SK Hynix amplify these swings

Overseas investors increasingly treat South Korean and Japanese equities as one combined AI and semiconductor basket. Escalating Middle East tensions also weighed on Wall Street overnight, adding further pressure across Asian markets Friday.

Analysts’ Insight

This week’s whipsaw trading highlights how tightly linked Japan and South Korea’s semiconductor stocks have become. Analysts point to leveraged ETF flows and AI-driven investor sentiment as key volatility amplifiers right now. With Nikkei 225 volatility at levels unseen since 2008, traders should brace for continued sharp swings. Watching SK Hynix and Samsung’s earnings trajectory remains essential for gauging near-term direction across both indices.

Disclaimer:

The content shared by Meyka AI PTY LTD is for research and informational purposes only. Meyka is not a financial advisory service, and the information provided should not be treated as investment or trading advice.