By Patrick O'Donnell and Callum Keown
Glowing praise from President Donald Trump has often helped stocks higher. But it's not helping Micron at all.
The memory-chip maker was falling again ahead of the open Thursday after a sharp 10.6% drop in the previous session.
Trump's support isn't the reason for the fall. Broader technology sector weakness has hit some of the year's hottest stocks — and Micron is certainly one of those, up 262% in 2026.
Micron announced a $250 million investment in Trump Accounts earlier this week, tax-advantaged savings accounts for children under 18. Those born between 2025 and 2028 will receive a $1,000 deposit from the Treasury Department.
"Micron, a truly GREAT American Company, and one of the 'HOTTEST' anywhere in the World, has announced a HISTORIC $250 MILLION Investment in TRUMP ACCOUNTS," Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social Wednesday.
But it's not a good time to be a hot stock, or a hot stock market for that matter.
South Korea's KOSPI index tumbled Thursday as the tech selloff that ravaged U.S. markets spread overseas.
The index finished trading down 7.9% Thursday. It's a hostage to its biggest constituents — memory-chip players SK Hynix and Samsung, which dived 14.6% and 9.1% respectively.
The two are major competitors to Micron, which was down another 2.4% to $1,007.88 ahead of the open Thursday.
The move could just be a brief blip in what has been a stellar year for the KOSPI and Micron. The South Korean index remains up 81% in 2026 — that compares with a 9.3% rise for the S&P 500 year to date.
Write to Patrick O'Donnell at patrick.odonnell@barrons.com and Callum Keown at callum.keown@dowjones.com
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