AI-fueled Samsung affiliates reshape KOSPI market cap rankings

The composition of KOSPI's largest companies has shifted markedly this year as investor enthusiasm for artificial intelligence (AI) propelled Samsung Group affiliates and semiconductor-related stocks higher, while secondary battery, shipbuilding and defense shares that dominated the market last year lost ground, according to the Korea Exchange Sunday. Among the top 10 KOSPI companies by market capitalization, excluding preferred shares, only Samsung Electronics, SK hynix and KB Financial Group maintained their rankings from the end of last year through Friday, holding the No. 1, No. 2 and No. 10 spots, respectively. The positions of the other seven companies changed within less than six months. Several Samsung affiliates entered the top 10 by market capitalization this year, led by Samsung Electro-Mechanics. Benefiting from the AI boom, the company saw its share price surge 589 percent as demand and prices for multilayer ceramic capacitors, a key component used in AI servers, climbed sharply. As a result, its market capitalization expanded from about 19 trillion won ($12 billion) to 131