South Korea’s rookie investors lose small fortunes amid AI stocks frenzy

Seoul, South Korea – As South Korea’s stock market was surging on the back of AI-driven chip demand early this year, Eun-bi withdrew most of her savings and invested them in shares.Eun-bi, a civil servant in her thirties, bought several of the market’s star performers, chief among them memory chipmaker SK Hynix, and a United States-listed fund that tracks the semiconductor industry, hoping to raise funds for her wedding in April next year.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemslist 1 of 4Trump administration moves to end rule protecting swaths of forest landlist 2 of 4Bolivia arrests political adviser to Latin American right-wingerslist 3 of 4Minnesota official sues Texas governor to force ICE agent’s extraditionlist 4 of 4Democrats call for USS Lincoln probe, question US Navy’s readinessend of listBut when South Korea’s benchmark KOSPI index plunged nearly 40 percent from its June peak, Eun-bi’s portfolio lost tens of thousands of dollars, throwing her wedding plans into doubt.“Now I’m wondering if I should scale down the ceremony or skip the honeymoon,” Eun-bi, who requested to be identified only by her first name, told Al Jazeera.Eun-bi is among the millions of South Koreans who inv...