Kospi Breaks Below 5,000 in Sharp Slide Before Paring Losses on Friday
Key Facts
South Korea’s Kospi fell below 5,000 points during trading on Friday, November 6, 2026, as losses in technology stocks triggered a trading halt, according to Associated Press coverage. The agency reported that the index fell 7.4% to 4,985.99 points in morning trading before later paring its losses. In an update published by Aju Press, the index stood at 5,144.31 points at 11:28 a.m., down 4.45% from the previous session’s close. The Kospi ended Thursday’s trading at 5,383.8 points, according to EL7 data. The decline followed a sell-off that weighed on technology shares and global markets amid investor concerns about the pace of AI spending.
The decline extended to South Korean stocks beyond the largest companies, with the Kosdaq falling 7.02% to 630.78 points on Friday, compared with its Thursday close of 678.41 points, according to Aju Press. Samsung Electronics shares lost 7.9% in morning trading as the Kospi fell, according to the Associated Press. The performance of the two indexes reflects broadening selling pressure in the South Korean market during the session’s early hours. But a mid-morning update showed the Kospi rebounding above 5,000 points as it pared some of its losses. The index was then down less than it had been in morning trading, when it temporarily fell below that level.
The sell-off extended to other Asian markets, with Japan’s Nikkei falling 5.7% to 57,576.63 points by midday Friday, according to the Associated Press. In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 lost about 1.0% to reach 8,973.00 points. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng also fell 0.7% to 24,630.03 points, while the Shanghai Composite dropped 1.3% to 3,642.10 points at midday. Losses varied across markets, but came as a sell-off in Asian technology stocks followed declines in U.S. shares linked to AI. Japanese stocks recorded the steepest decline among the Asian indexes cited in the midday update.
The Asian declines followed sharp losses on Wall Street during Thursday’s session, November 5, when the S&P 500 fell 4.4% and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 5.5%, according to the Associated Press. The agency said the declines came amid a broad retreat in shares linked to AI. It also reported that the Nasdaq was down 11.9% from its record high set the previous month, putting it in correction territory, which the source defines as a decline of more than 10%. The coverage noted that the S&P 500’s drop was its worst since U.S. President Donald Trump shook global markets in April 2025. Those losses set the immediate backdrop for the weakness in sentiment that carried into Asian trading the following day.
The Associated Press linked the selling pressure to investor concerns that high borrowing costs could slow the construction of AI data centers. The agency said any slowdown in building these centers could mean fewer purchases of AI chips and of goods and services tied to that investment. It added that concerns also included sector stocks having risen too far. On regulatory risks, the coverage said sweeping Democratic victories in the U.S. midterm elections raised the possibility that governments could impose a temporary halt on construction of new data centers. The agency linked that possibility to objections to AI and rising electricity bills, adding another source of concern about the sector’s infrastructure expansion plans.
In its 11:28 a.m. update, the Kospi had rebounded to 5,144.31 points, with its loss narrowing to 4.45% against Thursday’s close, according to Aju Press. This showed how the index moved during the same session after falling below 5,000 points in morning trading, when it was down 7.4% at 4,985.99 points, according to the Associated Press. These levels correspond to the specific trading times cited in the coverage and do not represent Friday’s final close. The Kospi’s previous close was 5,383.8 points on November 5, according to EL7 data. Asian markets continued trading amid ongoing concerns about the cost of financing data centers and the possibility that investment in them could slow.