KOSPI Jumps Over 3% Amid SK hynix ADR Optimism

SK hynix ADR to Debut on U.S. Markets Tonight
Overwhelming Demand from Global Institutional Investors Signals Blockbuster Debut
Second-Largest U.S. IPO After SpaceX
Expected to Spark Recovery in Semiconductor Investor Sentiment

The KOSPI index started trading at 7,552.49, up 260.58 points from the previous trading day, on the 10th. The electronic board in the dealing room of the Hana Bank headquarters in Jung-gu, Seoul, displays the current status of the domestic stock market and the KRW/USD exchange rate. July 10, 2026. Photo by Jinhyung Kang

Driven by heightened expectations for the listing of SK hynix's American Depositary Receipts (ADR) and a recovery in investor sentiment for U.S. semiconductor stocks, the Korean stock market achieved a strong rebound. As overseas institutional investors rushed to subscribe to SK hynix ADRs, signaling a highly successful offering, positive forecasts emerged that even the Korean-listed shares would undergo a valuation reassessment.

Surge in KOSPI on Hopes for SK hynix ADR Listing

As of 10:00 a.m. on July 10, the KOSPI was trading at 7,554.36, up 3.60% from the previous trading day. At the same time, the KOSDAQ was also up 4.14% at 826.90. Institutional investors net bought approximately 770 billion won on the KOSPI, pushing the index higher, while foreign investors and individuals were net sellers of around 670 billion won and 60 billion won, respectively.

Market leader Samsung Electronics was trading at 290,000 won, up 4.32% from the previous session. SK hynix also gained 0.69% to reach 2,201,000 won. Other major stocks by market capitalization, including SK Square (up 3.77%), Samsung Electro-Mechanics (up 8.10%), Hyundai Motor Company (up 3.14%), LG Energy Solution (up 3.99%), Samsung Life Insurance (up 3.68%), and KB Financial Group (up 7.23%), all showed upward momentum.

Overnight, the U.S. stock market's semiconductor sector surged on renewed optimism for artificial intelligence (AI) investments, positively impacting the Korean market as well. The Nasdaq index rose by 1.30%, and the S&P 500 finished up 0.8%. Micron Technology jumped 4.5% after announcing plans to invest over 250 billion dollars in U.S. plants by 2035 to meet rising AI demand. Meta also rose 4.7% after unveiling its own AI chip production plans, and SanDisk climbed 7.6%. The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index surged by around 3%. Global investment bank UBS noted, "Memory semiconductor sales in July reached 74.6 billion dollars, a 32% jump from the previous month, setting a new monthly record," and predicted a prolonged boom for memory semiconductors.

The oversubscription for SK hynix ADRs, with demand exceeding seven times the offered shares, also fueled the local semiconductor rally. On this day, SK hynix announced it had set the offering price for its U.S. ADRs at 149 dollars per share. This marks the largest overseas company listing in the U.S. to date and the second-largest overall U.S. IPO after SpaceX. Seo Sangyoung, Executive Director at Mirae Asset Securities, analyzed, "The strong demand for SK hynix's Nasdaq ADR listing and the high preference among U.S. investors for AI memory companies have had a positive impact on the stock market."

According to Bloomberg and other sources, the SK hynix ADR book-building process attracted demand from global long-term investment funds, technology-focused funds, sovereign wealth funds, and Asia-specialized global investors, resulting in subscriptions exceeding seven times the number of shares on offer. Notably, major investors such as Baillie Gifford, Coatue Management, and Situational Awareness reportedly expressed intentions to invest up to 7 billion dollars.

The securities industry views the ADR listing of SK hynix as a pivotal opportunity to boost the value of its Korean-listed shares. Despite outperforming competitor Micron in terms of earnings and technology, SK hynix's market capitalization and price-to-earnings ratio (PER) have been undervalued due to its domestic listing. With the example of TSMC in Taiwan, whose stock was re-evaluated after its ADR listing in the U.S. in 1997, expectations for a similar revaluation are on the rise.

Kim Dongwon, Head of Research at KB Securities, explained, "After TSMC listed its ADR, it traded at a premium to the home market, and continuous arbitrage and conversion trades took place between the original and ADR shares. As a result, a virtuous cycle of revaluation strengthened for both the Taiwanese shares and the U.S. ADR." He added, "SK hynix is also likely to see a similar revaluation trend develop between its U.S. ADR and Korean-listed shares going forward."

ADR to Debut on Nasdaq Tonight, Premium Pricing Expected

SK hynix's ADRs will begin trading on Nasdaq at 9:30 a.m. Eastern Time on July 10 (local time), which corresponds to 10:30 p.m. Korean time that night. Once quotes are posted after listing, an initial price will be established and actual trading will commence, allowing all investors to buy and sell SK hynix ADRs. On the first day, trading will be on a conditional basis before regular trading begins, with the ticker symbol SKHYV. On July 13, when regular trading starts, the symbol will change to SKHY.

The ADR offering price of 149 dollars is about 2.9% higher than the converted price of SK hynix common stock, which closed at 2,186,000 won on the previous day. Using an exchange rate of 1,509.9 won per dollar, one common share is equivalent to 1,447.8 dollars, and one ADR is 144.8 dollars. According to disclosures to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), 10 SK hynix ADRs represent one common share.

Despite recent volatility in memory semiconductor stocks, the offering price was set at a premium rather than at a discount. Industry insiders noted that SK hynix achieved premium pricing in this listing process—an unusual case among overseas company offerings.

The global memory semiconductor market is expected to continue growing despite some concerns about a peak-out, where growth slows after a peak. Market research firm Counterpoint Research expects the average operating margin for the "big three" global memory companies—Samsung Electronics, SK hynix, and Micron—to reach 75–80% in the second quarter of this year, forecasting that the supply shortage-driven upcycle will continue at least through next year. This sentiment is believed to have influenced the ADR offering price for SK hynix.

With the offering price set at 149 dollars, the total ADR offering amounts to 26.5 billion dollars (about 40 trillion won). This surpasses the 25 billion dollar IPO of Alibaba on the New York Stock Exchange in 2014. Last month, SpaceX achieved a record-breaking 75 billion dollar IPO, and now SK hynix is poised to mark the second-largest U.S. IPO in history.

SK hynix plans to aggressively expand its semiconductor production capacity. The funds raised through this offering will be used for the construction and facility investments of the first phase of the Yongin Semiconductor Cluster, the Cheongju P&T7 Advanced Packaging Fab, and related machinery and equipment, as indicated in its disclosures. Additionally, 1.19 trillion won will be invested in the adoption of extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography equipment scheduled for introduction by the end of next year.

The ADR listing is expected to not only bring in massive cash inflows but also facilitate more favorable long-term financing through a revaluation of the company's value. SK hynix remains the undisputed global leader in advanced memory semiconductor markets such as high-bandwidth memory (HBM), and continues to maintain a significant gap in both DRAM market share and operating profit over third-ranked Micron, yet its price-to-earnings ratio (PER) is still rated below that of Micron.

The ADR is also expected to drive greater shareholder returns. Ryu Hyunggeun, Research Analyst at Daishin Securities, stated, "Taking into account the cash inflow from the ADR listing, additional cash from a partial sale of the Kioxia stake, and higher performance expectations, there is sufficient room to expect enhanced shareholder returns. This will likely include not only share buybacks and cancellations but also special dividends and other measures to strengthen shareholder value."

Ryu further emphasized, "The direction of the company's mid- to long-term shareholder return policy will depend on the performance of the ADR. If the ADR has a positive impact on corporate value, the ADR proportion could expand to as much as 10% in the long term, and before such expansion, share buybacks and cancellations will be carried out in parallel to prevent dilution of existing shareholder value."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.