According to Liberty Times (自由時報), U.S. equities closed mixed on Wednesday, August 5, 2026, ahead of the Asian trading session. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 263.24 points, or 0.49%, marking its fifth straight session of gains and a fresh record high. The S&P 500 slipped 0.17%, the Nasdaq fell 0.83%, and the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index (SOX) dropped 1.4%. That semiconductor-specific weakness on Wall Street preceded the tech-heavy declines that followed in Seoul and Tokyo the next morning.
| U.S. Index (Aug 5 close) | Change |
|---|---|
| Dow Jones Industrial Average | +263.24 pts (+0.49%) |
| S&P 500 | -0.17% |
| Nasdaq | -0.83% |
| Philadelphia Semiconductor Index (SOX) | -1.4% |
On the morning of August 6, South Korea's KOSPI opened down 119.52 points, or 1.81%, at 6,478.75, according to Liberty Times. The index then extended losses as SK Hynix opened down more than 5% and Samsung Electronics fell more than 2%, dragging KOSPI to a retest low of 6,379.35, down 218.92 points or 3.31%.
The pattern echoes an earlier episode on June 14, reported by Anue (鉅亨網): KOSPI opened below 6,800 that day, with SK Hynix down more than 3% and Samsung Electronics down more than 1% intraday. Low-bargain buying then pushed the index to a rebound of 1.57%, reclaiming the 6,900 level, as losses in the two memory-chip makers narrowed.
Japan's Nikkei 225 opened down 404 points, or 0.6%, at 65,896 on August 6 — directly breaching the 66,000 level, according to Liberty Times. Declines in electronics names including Nitto Boseki, Mitsui Mining & Smelting, Kioxia, and Murata pushed the index lower still, to a retest low of 65,208, down 1,092 points or 1.64%.
This also mirrors the June 14 session covered by Anue: the Nikkei 225 opened lower and fell to an intraday low of 66,287.24, a decline of about 1.4%, before the drop narrowed sharply and the index turned positive, rising 0.26% to reclaim the 67,000 level.
| Market Session | Open/Low | Change |
|---|---|---|
| KOSPI open (Aug 6) | 6,478.75 | -119.52 pts (-1.81%) |
| KOSPI retest low (Aug 6) | 6,379.35 | -218.92 pts (-3.31%) |
| KOSPI intraday low (Jun 14) | below 6,800 | ~-3% |
| KOSPI rebound (Jun 14) | above 6,900 | +1.57% |
| Nikkei 225 open (Aug 6) | 65,896 | -404 pts (-0.6%) |
| Nikkei 225 retest low (Aug 6) | 65,208 | -1,092 pts (-1.64%) |
| Nikkei 225 intraday low (Jun 14) | 66,287.24 | ~-1.4% |
| Nikkei 225 rebound (Jun 14) | above 67,000 | +0.26% |
The June 14 episode traced back to a specific geopolitical trigger, according to Anue: U.S. President Donald Trump announced the resumption of a blockade action against Iran, reigniting tension around the Strait of Hormuz and sending international oil prices up as much as nearly 10%. In the same session, KOSPI briefly plunged close to 3%, breaking below 6,800, and the Nikkei 225 briefly fell more than 1,000 points — before buying on the dip pulled both indexes' losses back sharply.
The June 14 selloff also had a direct U.S.-market transmission channel, per Anue: a sharp decline in SK Hynix's American Depositary Receipt (ADR) led losses across the semiconductor sector, dragging technology shares broadly lower and pulling the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index (SOX) to a close down nearly 5% that day — a steeper single-day drop than the 1.4% SOX decline recorded on August 5.
The two episodes documented here — June 14 and August 5–6 — share a common shape: KOSPI and the Nikkei both opened or traded sharply lower with SK Hynix and Samsung Electronics leading declines, and both times the SOX or its ADR-linked proxy moved in tandem (down nearly 5% on June 14, down 1.4% on August 5). The key difference in the evidence is the outcome: on June 14, both Asian indexes reversed intraday, with KOSPI rebounding 1.57% to reclaim 6,900 and the Nikkei rising 0.26% to retake 67,000. The Liberty Times report on the August 6 open does not include a same-day rebound figure — as of the reported open, KOSPI had retested a 3.31% loss at 6,379.35 and the Nikkei had fallen 1.64% to 65,208, both below the June 14 rebound levels.
According to Anue (鉅亨網), U.S. President Trump announced the resumption of a blockade action against Iran, raising tension around the Strait of Hormuz and sending international oil prices up as much as nearly 10%, which coincided with intraday plunges in both KOSPI and the Nikkei 225.
According to Liberty Times (自由時報), KOSPI opened down 119.52 points, or 1.81%, at 6,478.75, then extended losses to a retest low of 6,379.35, down 218.92 points or 3.31%, as SK Hynix fell more than 5% and Samsung Electronics fell more than 2%.
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