Nvidia, Tesla, Samsung, SK Hynix bleed billions as US election-triggered AI rout hits global markets

Tesla and SpaceX also declined over 9 per cent each.Meanwhile other major technology counters were also caught in the selling pressure as Meta Platforms fell 3.96 per cent, while Amazon and Google parent Alphabet dropped over 2 per cent eachKOSPI crash as Samsung and SK Hynix sinkThe rout hit Asian markets hard on Friday as investors reassessed the global AI boom.

South Korea's KOSPI crashed as much as 8.77 per cent in early trade, breaching the 5,000 mark for the first time in nine months to 4,911.28, while the index pared some losses, it was down 6.02 per cent at 5,059.69 at last check.South Korean chipmakers Samsung Electronics Co and SK Hynix plunged nearly 11 per cent and 14 per cent respectively in early deals.

Japan's Nikkei 225 tumbled 5.96 per cent to 57,434.77, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng fell 1.26 per cent to 24,484.63.Sentiment shock and capex realityThe election rout adds to existing concerns over heavy AI investments and returns.

An Iconic Wealth report noted that top hyperscalers had already lost nearly $900 billion in combined market value around their Q3 2026 results.In the third quarter, capital expenditure surged 120 per cent to $77.3 billion at Amazon, 114 per cent to $51.4 billion at Alphabet, and 80 per cent to $33.9 billion at Meta, squeezing free cash flows despite Q3 cloud revenue growth of 39 per cent at Amazon and 103 per cent at Alphabet, alongside 26 per cent advertising growth at Meta.Iconic Wealth stated, "Capex rose 80-120% year on year across the group, and the market reacted more to the scale of the spending than to the earnings behind it." Yet, the firm added that "demand for compute far exceeds supply, and there are no near-term indications of capex slowing."Meanwhile, Emkay Global highlighted that local ballot measures restricting data centres won or led in 44 out of 45 votes across 10 US states during the midterms, while AI hyperscaler debt issuance reached ₹19,400 crore in 2026 to date to fund data centre expansion.Downplaying fears of a lasting downturn, Emkay Global wrote, "We believe the midterms are a sentiment shock for AI (led by local anti-data center sentiments), not a capex shock.

AI capex growth will probably slow in 2027, but mainly because the base is so large, not because of politics."The brokerage noted that Asia's semiconductor supply chain remains supported unless credit conditions tighten sharply, adding, "State-level data center restrictions/bans will simply cause firms to move data centers to states which are more welcoming."Disclaimer: This article has been written by the author, who is not a SEBI-registered research analyst or investment adviser.

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