Microsoft results lift AI sentiment as SK Hynix and Samsung surge more than 20%
South Korean chip giants SK Hynix and Samsung Electronics both surged more than 20% in early trading in Seoul on Friday after delivering strong earnings, reigniting market optimism over AI-related spending and sparking a sharp rebound in U.S. tech stocks. LG Innotek climbed as much as 11.2%, while Seoul Semiconductor gained 7.8%. The rally completely reversed this week’s steep selloff. Semiconductor stocks had been under pressure as investors worried that valuations in the AI sector had become too high. The iShares Semiconductor ETF in the U.S. (SOXX) jumped more than 8% overnight. Investors rushed back into AI chip-related names after results from two U.S. tech giants’ cloud businesses came in better than expected. Amazon rose more than 9% in after-hours trading, helped by continued strength in its cloud computing business, after second-quarter revenue topped market expectations. Microsoft jumped more than 15% during regular trading on Thursday as growth in its Azure cloud business beat forecasts, further reinforcing confidence that spending on AI infrastructure will remain robust.