Korean stock ETFs opened sharply higher, with the CSOP SK hynix Daily Leveraged 2X Product (07709) rising 13.65% to HK$21.48 and the CSOP Samsung Electronics Daily Leveraged 2X Product (07747) gaining 10.33% to HK$50.86 as of press time.

Driven by expectations of increased shareholder returns and a resurgence in AI-related trading, South Korea's KOSPI index surged at the open, with SK hynix climbing more than 7% and Samsung Electronics rising over 5%.

According to reports, SK hynix plans to announce an additional shareholder return program worth 50 trillion to 60 trillion won (approximately US$38 billion to US$45 billion) on October 28, the same day as its third-quarter earnings release. Combined with the recently completed 40 trillion won share buyback and cancellation, the company's total shareholder return for the year is expected to reach 90 trillion to 100 trillion won, setting a historic record and roughly seven times last year's level.

Claude developer Anthropic has officially released its IPO prospectus, with strong revenue growth figures significantly easing market concerns about an "AI bubble" and reigniting the AI boom. The filing shows that revenue reached US$16.29 billion in the six months ending in June, a surge of 1,304% year-on-year. Meanwhile, Meta is advancing a large-scale equity financing, SpaceX has secured a GPU financing commitment, and the market expects AI capital expenditure to continue receiving funding support.

Leading Korean brokerage KB Securities said on Monday that Samsung Electronics and SK hynix are currently as undervalued as they were during the global financial crisis. Both companies' earnings have soared, but their share prices have failed to keep pace with profit growth. Although shares of Samsung and SK hynix have risen 65% and 88% respectively so far this year, as of the close on October 23, their stock prices were 36% and 52% below their late-June highs, and their price-to-earnings ratios have dropped to about 3 times.