US Pre-Market, 24 August 2026: Samsung's Payout Terms Send Memory Stocks Lower
Sentiment: mixed S&P 500 futures: -0.14% Nasdaq 100 futures: -0.55%
Nasdaq 100 futures trade at 29,226.50, down 0.55%, after Samsung Electronics set out a shareholder return plan of 90 to 110 trillion won without confirming a buyback, sending Samsung down 8.70% and the KOSPI down 3.12% to 6,696.96. SNDK.US leads the US pre-market at -5.58%, with STX.US -4.00%, WDC.US -3.86% and MU.US -3.43%. S&P 500 futures are only 0.14% lower because buyers are paying up for staples, healthcare and gold miners at the same time.
What is moving futures
Across 222 US-listed large caps worth $69.4 trillion, the semiconductor, memory and AI-hardware group is 1.33% lower on a cap-weighted basis, erasing $166.5 billion, or 23.9 bps of that aggregate. Everything outside that group adds back roughly $37 billion, which is why the swept universe is 0.19% lower and S&P 500 futures only 0.14%.
- Semis, memory and AI hardware: -1.33% cap-weighted, worth -$166.5 billion. Samsung's payout terms are the trigger.
- Staples: +0.71%, worth +$19.4 billion. KO.US +1.02%, MO.US +0.94%, PEP.US +0.80%.
- Healthcare: +0.45%, worth +$19.8 billion. NVO.US +1.50%, LLY.US +0.61%, DHR.US +0.54%.
- Energy: -0.48%, worth -$8.1 billion, tracking WTI 1.94% lower at US$85.37.
- The seven largest platforms: +0.05%. NVDA.US +0.01%, MSFT.US -0.07%, AAPL.US +0.44%, META.US +0.17%. The biggest AI names are flat while their hardware suppliers fall.
Overnight drivers
- Samsung's return plan: 90 to 110 trillion won, with roughly 30 trillion won of cash dividends flagged for the third quarter and final terms deferred to an October board meeting. No buyback detail accompanied the announcement. Samsung Electronics fell 8.70% to 257,000 won, SK Hynix 3.41% to 1,671,000 won.
- KOSPI flows: foreign and institutional investors sold a net 4.97 trillion won of Korean stock, while retail investors bought 3.32 trillion won.
- Chip equipment follows memory: AMAT.US -2.87%, LRCX.US -2.82%, KLAC.US -2.57%. These three sell memory makers their production tools.
- Optical and connectivity: LITE.US -5.52% and GLW.US -3.46%, the second-worst group behind memory itself.
- Gold at US$4,718.70/oz: +0.81%, with VIX 4.96% higher at 15.88 and the dollar index +0.12% at 98.92.
Pre-market movers
| Ticker | Pre-market | Reason |
|---|---|---|
| PDD.US | +3.77% | Q2 adjusted EPS per ADS RMB19.33 versus RMB18.35 consensus |
| JCI.US | +1.85% | Unannounced, likely flow-driven |
| AMT.US | +1.75% | Bid with REITs, group +0.46% cap-weighted |
| NVO.US | +1.50% | Bid with healthcare, group +0.45% cap-weighted |
| KO.US | +1.02% | Bid with staples, group +0.71% cap-weighted |
| SNDK.US | -5.58% | Memory repricing after Samsung's payout terms |
| LITE.US | -5.52% | Optical supplier to AI datacentre buildout |
| STX.US | -4.00% | Storage sold with memory |
| WDC.US | -3.86% | Storage sold with memory |
| NBIS.US | -3.64% | AI infrastructure sold with hardware |
| MU.US | -3.43% | Largest US memory name, $1.09 trillion market value |
| MRVL.US | -3.40% | Reports Thursday, after falling 5.57% Friday |
Overnight Asia and Europe
- KOSPI: 6,696.96 (-3.12%)
- Hang Seng: 25,517.33 (-1.89%)
- Nikkei 225: 65,528.09 (-0.74%)
- Shanghai Composite: 3,882.01 (-0.59%)
- STOXX 600: 654.11 (-0.01%)
- DAX: 26,132.72 (-0.01%)
- FTSE 100: 10,819.14 (+0.02%)
- CAC 40: 8,469.58 (-0.18%)
Korea fell four times as far as Japan, and every European index sits within 0.2% of flat. The overnight selling sits in one supply chain. BABA.US is 2.00% lower after falling 8.57% on Friday, and NTES.US gives back 2.82% of Friday's 6.98% gain.
Friday's close, for reference
- S&P 500: 7,674.37 (+0.43%)
- Nasdaq Composite: 26,180.46 (+0.43%)
- Dow: 53,277.01 (+0.98%)
- Russell 2000: 3,017.87 (+0.85%)
Friday's gain left the S&P 500 down 1.43% for the week. GS.US rose 3.73% and TSLA.US 5.14% on Friday, while MRVL.US fell 5.57%.
Economic calendar today (ET)
- 08:30 Chicago Fed National Activity Index (July)
- 11:30 Three-month and six-month bill auctions
- 14:00 Treasury Secretary Bessent speaks
- Earnings: PDD.US (reported before the open), XPEV.US
Week ahead (ET)
- Tue 25 Aug, 09:00 S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller home prices (June); 10:00 CB Consumer Confidence, new home sales, Richmond Fed manufacturing. Fed discount rate minutes. INTU.US reports.
- Wed 26 Aug, 08:30 July PCE and core PCE, second estimate of Q2 GDP, July durable goods orders. NVDA.US, CRM.US and CRWD.US report after the close.
- Thu 27 Aug, 08:30 Weekly jobless claims. The Jackson Hole symposium opens and runs to 29 August. MRVL.US reports.
- Fri 28 Aug Preliminary annual benchmark revision to non-farm payrolls. Fed Chair Warsh speaks at Jackson Hole.
PCE and NVDA.US both land on Wednesday. The payrolls revision and Warsh at Jackson Hole both land on Friday.
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