Jobs shock topples the chip rally Kospi -5.5%, Nasdaq -4%

On June 3 in San Antonio, the New York Knicks won NBA Finals Game 1 105-95. Jalen Brunson erupted for 30 points, while Victor Wembanyama posted 26 points and 12 rebounds but shot just 28.6% (6 of 21) as the Spurs faltered.

The French Open women's singles final is held June 6 in Paris. No. 8 seed Mirra Andreeva (19) faces qualifier Maja Chwalinska (world No. 114), guaranteeing a first-time Grand Slam champion. Chwalinska is the first qualifier to reach the final in the Open era.

President Trump and New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani both confirmed they will attend NBA Finals Game 3 at Madison Square Garden on June 8. The political pair will sit side by side as the Knicks host a Finals game at home for the first time since 1999.

The FIFA World Cup opens June 11 at Estadio Azteca in Mexico City. Shakira and Burna Boy, who sing the official anthem 'Dai Dai,' headline the opening ceremony as hosts Mexico face South Africa. The tournament runs through July 19 with 48 nations.

Head coach Hong Myung-bo confirmed Korea's final 26-man World Cup roster. Captain Son Heung-min, Kim Min-jae and Lee Kang-in headline; Lee joins after PSG duty. The squad finished camp in Salt Lake City and opens its group stage against Czechia on June 12.

Per the May CPI released June 2 by the National Data Agency, the index rose to 119.92, up 3.1% year-on-year. It is the highest in 26 months since March 2024 (3.1%), with petroleum products surging 24.2% on the Middle East war.

Per Q1 household credit data the Bank of Korea released May 19, the end-March balance reached KRW1,993.1 trillion. That is up KRW14 trillion from the prior quarter, again a record since the series began in Q4 2002.

Per Korea Real Estate Board data on June 4, Seoul apartment jeonse prices rose 0.29% week-on-week for a cumulative 3.77% gain since the year's start, about six times the year-earlier pace (0.65%). Seoul jeonse listings fell 32.8% on the year to 17,116.

After 11.216 million layers were culled over high-pathogenicity avian influenza, the average price of a 30-egg special tray reached KRW7,440 as of June 4, up 7.2% from a year earlier (KRW6,942). E-mart and Lotte Mart capped purchases at one tray per shopper through June 10.

As of May 28 the five major banks' household loan balance was KRW770.27 trillion, up KRW2.98 trillion from end-April, the biggest monthly gain since August last year. Credit loans, not mortgages, swelled over KRW2.6 trillion, drawing warnings about worsening debt amid an overheated stock market.

India's RBI held the repo rate at 5.25% unanimously at its June 5 MPC. Governor Malhotra cited West Asia geopolitics, an oil surge and monsoon uncertainty as key risks and kept a neutral stance, while cutting the FY27 GDP growth forecast to 6.6% from 6.9%.

The Indonesian rupiah hit a record low of 18,012 per dollar on June 5. The same day parliament passed a central-bank revision adding growth and jobs to BI's mandate, and losses deepened despite a $25,000 monthly FX-purchase cap effective June 2.

South Africa's SARB raised its policy rate 25bp to 7.00% on May 28. Four of six MPC members backed the hike, wary of second-round inflation from an oil surge tied to the Middle East war. The 2026 inflation forecast was lifted to 4.4% from 3.7%, with the next decision due in July.

Turkey's annual May inflation rose to 32.61% from 32.37%, topping the 32.5% forecast. The lira hit 46.09 per dollar on June 5, down 7% year-to-date. The TCMB kept its policy rate at 37% but tightened effectively via a 40% overnight lending rate, highlighting the gap to its 24% year-end goal.

The IMF board completed the second review of Argentina's $20B EFF on May 21 and immediately disbursed $1B, bringing cumulative payouts to about $15.8 billion. The IMF cut its 2026 growth forecast to 3.5%, raised inflation to 30.4%, and judged net reserves only marginally positive.

US nonfarm payrolls rose 172,000 in May, per the BLS June 5 release, double the roughly 80,000 forecast. Unemployment held at 4.3%, with gains led by leisure and hospitality (70,000), local government (55,000) and healthcare (35,000).

On strong jobs, the 10-year Treasury yield jumped to 4.54% on June 5 and the 2-year rose to 4.16%. The S&P 500 fell 0.7%, and odds of a December Fed hike jumped to 65% from 48% before the report.

At the June 16-17 FOMC, new Chair Warsh's first, the Fed is seen holding the rate (3.50-3.75%) with 97% odds. Wall Street has lifted December-hike odds to 70%, raising fears of renewed tightening.

Korea's May CPI rose 3.1% year-on-year, a 26-month high, per Statistics Korea on June 2. Petroleum products jumped 24.2% and international airfares 33.5% on the Middle East war, prompting the Bank of Korea to warn prices will stay above 3% for now.

Bloomberg reported June 4 that the Bank of Japan is mulling a hike to 1.0% from 0.75% at its June 15-16 meeting. The ECB, against 3.2% euro-zone May inflation, is seen 97% likely to raise its deposit rate to 2.25% from 2.00% on June 11.

On June 5 the Nasdaq plunged 4.1%, the S&P 500 fell 2.6% and the Dow 1.3%. May payrolls came in at 172,000, double the 85,000 forecast, fully pricing in a Fed rate hike.

The Kospi plunged 5.54% to close at 8,160.59 as foreigners sold a net KRW3.52 trillion. The won hit 1,539.1 per dollar, its weakest in 17 years since March 2009.

After guiding Q3 AI chip sales to $16B, below the $17.2B consensus, Broadcom fell another 4.6% Friday. The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index dropped 5.21% and Nvidia fell over 6% in two days, breaking below a $5 trillion market cap.

Taiwan's Taiex closed down 606.52 points (1.33%) at 45,070.94 after a 1,400-point swing. The Nikkei 225 fell 1.3% to 66,608 and the Hang Seng dropped 1.15% to 24,961.95.

Bitcoin fell to $61,000, breaking below its 200-day moving average for the first time since 2023. It logged a 14% weekly drop and 21% over four weeks, with spot ETFs seeing 13 straight days of $4.4 billion in net outflows.

Marvell Technology, which surged 32% on June 2 on CEO Jensen Huang's 'next trillion-dollar company' remark, fell 10.13% on June 5 as profit-taking met the Broadcom earnings shock. It still held a roughly 40% weekly gain.

Broadcom beat with fiscal Q2 revenue of $22.19B but fell 12.6% on June 5 after guiding Q3 AI chip sales to $16B, below the $17.2B consensus, and freezing its $100B annual target.

Micron, which topped a $1 trillion market cap for the first time on May 26 with a 19% surge, fell 9.11% on June 5 to around $956 as Broadcom fallout and fading rate-cut hopes on strong jobs combined.

SK Hynix fell 8.18% to KRW2.11 million in Korea on June 5, down nearly 10% intraday. Samsung Electronics dropped 6.4% and the Kospi fell over 5%, triggering a program-sell sidecar. Foreigners sold a net KRW564.8 billion on the Kospi.

Nvidia fell 4.82% on June 5 to around $207. Broadcom's AI guidance miss and the 172,000 May jobs surprise dented rate-cut hopes, triggering a broad selloff across AI chips as the Nasdaq fell 3% intraday.

Nvidia said in Seoul on June 5 that CEO Jensen Huang officially certified Samsung, SK Hynix and Micron as HBM4 suppliers for its Vera Rubin platform. Vera Rubin offers 10x the agentic-AI throughput of the prior Grace Blackwell generation.

The RTX Spark unveiled at Computex 2026 is a superchip combining a 20-core Grace ARM CPU and Blackwell GPU, offering up to 128GB of unified memory and 1 petaflop of AI performance. More than 30 laptops from ASUS, HP and Microsoft Surface ship this fall.

Microsoft unveiled seven in-house AI models at Build 2026 on June 2. Flagship MAI-Thinking-1, a 35-billion-active-parameter MoE reasoning model, scored 97% on AIME 25 and 53% on SWE Bench Pro and was trained independently without OpenAI data.

Ahead of Apple's June 8 WWDC 2026 keynote, last-minute iOS 27 leaks surfaced via Bloomberg on June 5. The new Siri is redesigned as a standalone chatbot app, may use a feature-access waitlist, and brings UI changes such as notifications sliding in from the left.

Anthropic filed a confidential draft S-1 with the US SEC on June 1. After a recent $65 billion Series H, it is valued at about $965 billion, with May annualized revenue of $47 billion, roughly 4x year-on-year growth.

SpaceX raised its Japan offering target by 25% to up to $2.5 billion on June 5. Strong Japanese retail demand pushed past the prior $2 billion goal; pricing at $135 a share and a Nasdaq listing remain set for June 12.

Quantinuum listed on the Nasdaq (QNT) on June 4, raising $1.68 billion. Priced at $60, above the range, it closed at about a $15.7 billion market cap, the largest IPO ever for a quantum-computing company spun out of Honeywell.

Anthropic completed a confidential S-1 filing with the SEC on June 1, formalizing an October listing. It comes right after a $65 billion Series H valued it at $965 billion, with a May annualized revenue run rate of $47 billion.

AI coding agent startup Cognition closed a $1 billion Series D on May 27 at a $26 billion valuation. Lux Capital, General Catalyst and 8VC co-led, with a $492 million revenue run rate marking 13x growth in eight months.

AI music-generation platform Suno closed a $400 million Series D led by Bond Capital on June 3 at a $5.4 billion valuation, more than double its $2.45 billion seven months ago. It has 2 million paying subscribers and generates 7 million songs daily.

On June 5 bitcoin fell to $62,875 for a 14.5% weekly drop, and ether plunged 17% to $1,668, the worst weekly decline since July 2024. A flight of capital toward AI IPOs and $1.2 billion in liquidations accompanied the move.

US spot bitcoin ETFs saw $3.05 million of net inflows on June 5, ending a record 13-day outflow streak. Cumulative outflows over that span reached $4.4 billion, shrinking total ETF assets to $80.4 billion from $104.2 billion.

Strategy disclosed in a June 1 8-K that it sold 32 bitcoin at an average of $77,135 in late May for $2.5 million. It is the first sale since 2022, with proceeds funding preferred dividends and holdings remaining at 843,706 BTC.

Per a June 5 WSJ report, major US banks including JPMorgan, Citi and Bank of America confirmed plans for a shared tokenized-deposit network run by The Clearing House, targeting early 2027. It is a blockchain counter to stablecoin deposit erosion.

With the EU MiCA transition period fully ending July 1, only about 210 (17%) of some 1,200 registered crypto service providers have completed full licensing. Unlicensed firms must halt EU services after that date or face fines up to EUR5 million.

WHO and Africa CDC unveiled a joint six-month continental plan to fight Bundibugyo Ebola on June 5, targeting a $518 million budget for June-November 2026.

Per WHO DON605 dated June 5, the DRC has 381 confirmed cases (64 deaths) and Uganda 19 (2 deaths), with Ituri province accounting for all 359 cases as cross-border spread continues.

Presented in an ASCO 2026 plenary, the phase 3 SARC041 showed abemaciclib cut progression or death risk 62% in advanced dedifferentiated liposarcoma, with median PFS of 9.7 months versus 1.5 on placebo, the first positive phase 3 in the tumor type.

The FDA accepted ivonescimab's (a PD-1/VEGF bispecific) BLA for second-line-plus EGFR-mutated non-small-cell lung cancer and set a review date of November 14, 2026, after the phase 3 HARMONi cut progression risk 48%.

The American Diabetes Association 2026 sessions opened June 5 in New Orleans. Novo Nordisk will present full CagriSema REIMAGINE phase 1-3 data on June 7, after REIMAGINE 2 showed a 1.91-point HbA1c drop and 14.2% weight loss.

Director Yeon Sang-ho's film 'Gunche' topped 4.12 million admissions as of June 5, leading the box office for 15 straight days. A break past 5 million looks likely on the Memorial Day holiday boost.

A24's horror film 'Backrooms' topped $100 million domestically on June 3, six days after release, becoming A24's first $100 million movie. Its global cumulative total surpassed $136 million.

Netflix Korea original 'Chamgyoyuk' premiered worldwide on June 5. The 10-part series starring Kim Mu-yeol and Lee Sung-min topped pre-release viewing intent and depicts a teacher-rights protection bureau.

BLACKPINK's Lisa will perform at the FIFA 2026 World Cup opening ceremony at SoFi Stadium in LA on June 12 alongside Katy Perry and Future. It is the first World Cup opening-ceremony performance by a female K-pop artist.

BOYNEXTDOOR releases its first full album 'HOME' at 6 p.m. on June 8, three years after debut. The pre-release 'Knock Knock Knock' music video topped Korea's daily popular MV chart on release day, raising anticipation.

Demna shut down New York's Times Square on May 16, putting 63 models on the runway for the Cruise 2027 'GucciCore' collection. Tom Brady, Cindy Crawford and Paris Hilton walked, while Kim Kardashian and Mariah Carey filled the front row.

Jonathan Anderson staged his Dior Cruise 2027 debut on an outdoor LACMA runway in LA on May 13. He placed pastel Cadillac convertibles on set and unveiled a Bar jacket and trompe-l'oeil denim inspired by Marlene Dietrich's 1949 couture jacket.

Matthieu Blazy staged his Chanel Cruise 2027 debut at a Biarritz beach casino on April 28, paying homage to Coco Chanel's 1920s founding ground. He led with marine stripes, mermaid fishtail gowns and Basque linen, with Nicole Kidman and Tilda Swinton attending.

Nicolas Ghesquiere unveiled Louis Vuitton Cruise 2027 at New York's Frick Collection on May 20. Inspired by a 1930s LV briefcase Keith Haring tagged in 1984, he applied pop-art color to Alma and Speedy bags and shift dresses.

Kering's Q1 2026 revenue, reported April 14, fell 6.2% year-on-year to EUR3.57 billion, with Gucci down 14.3% as reported to EUR1.35 billion. Shares rebounded 2.9% that day, and CEO Luca de Meo unveiled a 2030 ReconKering turnaround roadmap.

President Lee Jae-myung delivered the 71st Memorial Day address at Seoul National Cemetery on June 6 under the theme 'remember, record and take responsibility,' before some 3,000 veterans and bereaved families.

Right after the local-election landslide, the Lee Jae-myung government began forming its second cabinet, narrowing PM candidates to chief of staff Kang Hoon-sik and Justice Minister Jung Sung-ho, with a nomination expected as early as June 7.

As resignation demands erupted against PPP leader Jang Dong-hyeok after the June 3 election rout, Jang held on via a June 5 statement vowing to 'find a new path,' while floor leader Song Eon-seok resigned the same day.

After the US House passed an Iran war-powers resolution 215-208 on June 3, it moved to the Senate. The Senate had already cleared a procedural vote 50-47 on May 19 as four Republicans defected.

China's President Xi Jinping will make a state visit to North Korea on June 8-9 at the invitation of leader Kim Jong-un, North Korea and China announced simultaneously on June 5. It is Xi's first visit since 2019.

Iran's Foreign Minister Araghchi said via Tasnim on June 4-5 that there was no concrete progress in negotiations, reaffirming a halt in US communications. Brent crude fell about 3% over two days to around $95.

The OPEC+ 41st ministerial on June 7 met having pre-approved an 188,000-bpd output increase. But with the Hormuz closure, actual Saudi output runs about 3 million barrels short of quota, making the increase nominal at best.

Since the US naval blockade of Iran's ports began April 13, Iran's oil exports plunged from about 2 million bpd to under 300,000, and May oil revenue fell about 84% from March for cumulative losses of $5.8 billion, Al Jazeera reported June 5.

Hezbollah officially rejected the US-brokered Israel-Lebanon truce on June 4, demanding a full Israeli withdrawal as a precondition. Leader Naim Qassem called it tantamount to surrender, and Iran reaffirmed no US talks without Lebanon and Gaza truces.

The Hormuz crisis exposed fossil-fuel supply-chain fragility, reversing the energy-security debate, analysts said. At a June 5 Helsinki power summit, strategist Kingsmill Bond argued fossil fuels are now unstable and renewables steadier thanks to batteries, while the IEA's Birol forecast a renewables and nuclear expansion.

Per TrueUp's tally as of June 5, cumulative 2026 tech layoffs reached 149,935 (363 events), running at about 974 a day, a pace 44% faster than 2025.

Uber cut 23% of its People & Places HR staff on June 3, right after exhausting its AI coding budget in four months. With 95% of engineers using AI tools and 70% of committed code AI-generated, the company denied any AI link.

US May jobs rose 172,000, beating estimates, per the BLS June 5 release, but a Center for American Progress analysis found the broad U-6 rate at 8.1% and the long-term unemployed (27-plus weeks) running 43.8% above the 2018-19 average, signaling severe labor-market slack.

Per Goldman Sachs's AI hiring tracker on June 1, AI's monthly net job loss fell to 11,000 from 16,000, but AI-attributed cuts hit a single-month high of 21,900 in April. Warnings note data-center jobs vanish once construction ends as temporary work.

The Korea Federation of Micro Enterprise declared a June 9 Yeouido rally on June 1 to block full extension of the Labor Standards Act to workplaces with fewer than five workers. Chair Song Chi-young argued that extending 50% overtime, night and holiday premiums would spike costs.

Tesla's robotaxi expanded its geofence to all of metro Austin (about 245 sq km) on June 3, yet its actual unsupervised fleet shrank to 20 cars. Including 3 in Dallas and 6 in Houston, it totals just 39, against Waymo's roughly 3,000.

Waymo expanded coverage to 1,400 sq km across 11 cities on May 13, surpassing the area of Rhode Island, while WeRide and Uber unveiled Europe's first commercial robotaxi pilot in Madrid, Spain, on June 2.

BYD sold a total of 383,453 units in May, up 0.26% year-on-year, ending eight straight months of decline. Overseas sales topped 160,644 for the first time, up 80% year-on-year and over 41% of total sales.

Tesla's May European registrations showed wide country-by-country gaps. France surged 655% year-on-year to a record 5,446 units, while Europe overall fell 49% to 14,210 on Model Y stock shortages.

Joby Aviation completed New York City's first point-to-point eVTOL demo flights from April 23 to May 1. Showcasing sub-10-minute flights from JFK to a downtown Manhattan skyport, it is ahead of a mid-2026 FAA commercial pilot program.

A conspiracy theory cast a ballot-paper shortage at 50 polling stations including Songpa as deliberate blocking of conservative-area votes, but OhmyFact's June 5 check found it was an NEC forecasting failure, as a surge in same-day conservative turnout, like Jamsil-3-dong's 56.71% main-vote rate, was unanticipated.

Bundles of ballots marked with black circles for the Democratic Party were shared tens of thousands of times on X as proof of fraud during the count, but OhmyFact confirmed June 4 that they are absentee ballots where ordinary writing instruments are legally allowed, ruling the claim false.

A claim spread that early-voting ballot boxes were secretly opened and rigged the night before, but the NEC confirmed via YTN on June 2 that anyone can view ballot-box CCTV 24/7 without application at any provincial election commission, with dual clocks verifying it is live.

After the hantavirus situation, a map showing Europe and North America in red was shared hundreds of thousands of times on social media as 'Plandemic 2.0' proof, but Euronews's fact-check team confirmed with creator Bas Witkop on May 27 that it tallies news articles and regional alerts, not confirmed cases.

A video claiming to show a Tel Aviv bombing with 4 million views spread as real war footage, but ZDNet Korea confirmed March 7, citing BBC Verify, that it was AI-generated with tools like Google Veo, and MBC also reported deepfakes drew hundreds of millions of views.