The benchmark Kospi index in South Korea fell as much as 2.3%, pressured by overnight weakness in U.S. chip stocks, which weighed on their Korean counterparts, while government bond yields continued to climb. The Kospi has since pared some losses, trading down about 2%. The yield on South Korea's 10-year government bond is consolidating near its highest level in over two years, having risen nearly 30 basis points last week to 4.23%. Samsung Electronics, SK Hynix, and Hyundai Motor were among the biggest drags on the Kospi index. Investors are closely watching the latest rounds of wage negotiations between Samsung's management and its labor union. Meanwhile, the small-cap Kosdaq index fluctuated between a 1% decline and a 1.1% gain. The MSCI Asia Pacific index was up as much as 0.3% at one point.