Asian Markets Wrap | Samsung surges 8% after suspending strike | KOSPI Hits Multi-Month High

21 May 2026 , 06:08 PM

INDEX SNAPSHOT

• SSE Composite (China) — 4,077.28 | -2.04%
• Hang Seng (Hong Kong) — 25,386.53 | -1.03%
• Nikkei 225 (Japan) — 61,683.92 | +3.14%
• KOSPI (South Korea) — 7,815.59 | +8.42%

Market Briefs

China | SSE Composite | 4,077.28 | -2.04%

Shanghai fell sharply on Thursday, weighed down by concerns over Nvidia’s decision to refrain from forecasting any China sales and reports suggesting the company’s CEO acknowledged Chinese market share had effectively shifted toward Huawei — dampening sentiment in tech-linked mainland stocks.

Hong Kong | Hang Seng | 25,386.53 | -1.03%

Hong Kong bucked the broader Asian recovery, declining over 1% as tech-linked selling and concerns about shrinking US chip access for Chinese firms weighed on the index despite the positive mood elsewhere in the region.

Japan | Nikkei 225 | 61,683.92 | +3.14%

Tokyo surged over 3% in one of its strongest single-day gains in recent months, as Nvidia’s earnings beat overnight, falling oil prices, and a broad regional recovery in semiconductor stocks combined to send Japanese equities sharply higher.

South Korea | KOSPI | 7,815.59 | +8.42%

Seoul delivered a near-historic single-session rally, gaining over 600 points as Samsung Electronics struck a last-minute wage deal with its union hours before a major strike was set to begin, unleashing a wave of institutional buying that triggered circuit breakers on both the KOSPI and KOSDAQ at the open.

Key News and Impact on India

1. Samsung Averts Strike in Last-Minute Deal, Sending KOSPI to Multi-Month Highs

• Samsung Electronics and its labour union reached a tentative wage agreement late on Wednesday night, just hours before an 18-day strike involving over 45,000 workers was scheduled to begin
• The deal, brokered with government mediation, gives workers approximately 10.5% of Samsung’s operating profit as bonuses, delivered primarily in company shares rather than cash — and contingent on the company hitting its profit targets
• Samsung’s stock surged 8.51% to close at 299,500 won, briefly touching 300,000 won in premarket; SK Hynix jumped over 11%, reclaiming 1.9 million won
• A buy-side sidecar was triggered on the KOSPI at 9:24 AM and on the KOSDAQ at 9:27 AM — the first time both markets had seen simultaneous sidecars since April 1
• Institutional investors were net buyers of approximately 3 trillion won on the day; retail and foreign investors were net sellers

Impact on India: Avoidance of a prolonged work stoppage at Samsung removes a near-term threat to global memory chip and smartphone supply. For Indian electronics manufacturers and assemblers who depend on Korean semiconductor components, this keeps input costs and availability conditions stable. The rally also signals renewed global confidence in semiconductor sector fundamentals, which has indirect positive read-through for Indian IT and hardware companies exposed to the AI supply chain.

2. Nvidia Earnings Beat Drives Semiconductor Rally Across Asia

• Nvidia reported first-quarter revenues of approximately $81 billion, in line with expectations and marking another record quarter for the AI chipmaker
• The company’s second-quarter guidance of $91 billion came in slightly below what some analysts had pencilled in but was broadly well-received by markets overnight
• Notably, Nvidia’s CEO Jensen Huang did not offer any forward projections for China revenues, and separately acknowledged that Chinese market share in AI chips had effectively moved toward Huawei — a remark that weighed heavily on mainland China markets while boosting Japanese and Korean chip stocks
• The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index had already surged 4.49% ahead of the results, setting the tone for Asia’s session

Impact on India: A sustained AI hardware spending cycle anchored by Nvidia’s record revenues continues to generate strong downstream demand for Indian technology services. Indian firms with data centre, cloud, and AI infrastructure mandates from US hyperscalers benefit directly from Nvidia’s performance. The Huawei comment, while negative for China, also reinforces India’s positioning as an alternative AI investment destination — a narrative gaining traction with global technology investors.

3. WTI Crude Falls Below $100 as Iran Deal Edges Closer

• Crude oil prices fell sharply following Trump’s statement that US-Iran negotiations were in their “final stages,” with West Texas Intermediate settling at $98.26 per barrel — its first close below $100 in weeks
• Three fully loaded supertankers successfully transited the Strait of Hormuz on Wednesday, the first major oil cargoes to exit the waterway since the conflict started
• The development sent energy prices lower across the board, boosting rate-sensitive and import-dependent Asian economies
• Japan’s Nikkei was among the biggest beneficiaries, with energy cost relief supporting consumer and industrial sectors alongside the semiconductor rally

Impact on India: Oil falling below $100 per barrel is one of the most consequential near-term positives for the Indian economy. A sustained move below this level would reduce India’s annual crude import bill by tens of billions of dollars, ease the current account deficit, reduce pressure on the rupee, and give the RBI more flexibility on rates. Every $10 sustained fall in Brent saves India roughly $15 billion annually — making this the single most impactful external development for Indian macroeconomics in recent weeks.

4. China Markets Fall as Nvidia Shuts Door on China Sales Visibility

• Mainland Chinese stocks fell over 2% as Nvidia’s refusal to provide any China revenue guidance — and CEO Jensen Huang’s reported comment that the Chinese AI chip market had been “handed over to Huawei” — hit investor confidence in Chinese technology stocks
• The remarks added to existing concerns around US export restrictions on advanced semiconductors and suggested that the gap between US and Chinese AI chip capabilities may be widening rather than narrowing
• Both the SSE Composite and CSI 300 posted meaningful losses even as broader Asian markets rallied strongly on the Nvidia earnings beat

Impact on India: Nvidia’s retreat from the China market creates a structural vacuum in AI chip supply within the world’s second-largest economy. For India, this dynamic reinforces the strategic window to attract alternative semiconductor and AI infrastructure investment. Global chip companies seeking non-China manufacturing and deployment partners are increasingly looking at India — and developments like the Tata-ASML MoU announced earlier this week signal that India is actively working to fill that gap.

5. LG Electronics Hits Daily Upper Limit on Robotics Expectations

• LG Electronics reached its daily price limit on the Korean stock exchange on Thursday, driven by growing investor expectations around its robotics business division
• The company has been positioning its robotics segment as a high-growth future vertical, with recent demonstrations and partnership announcements attracting renewed institutional interest
• The move came alongside broader gains in Korean industrial and technology stocks following the Samsung deal, amplifying the session’s already exceptional gains

Impact on India: LG Electronics’ robotics push reflects a broader acceleration in industrial automation investment across Asia’s major electronics exporters. For India, which is in the early stages of building out its own manufacturing automation capabilities, the growing value being placed on robotics by Korean conglomerates signals where global capital expenditure in industrials is heading — a theme with direct relevance for Indian industrial policy and investment attraction in the manufacturing sector.