South Korea’s Korea Exchange activated a market-wide circuit breaker on March 9 after benchmark indices plunged sharply during early trading. The KOSPI dropped 449.38 points or 8.05 Percent to 5,135.49, while the technology-heavy KOSDAQ fell 74.58 points or 6.46 Percent to 1,080.09, triggering an automatic halt in trading for 20 minutes.

The sharp decline followed escalating concerns around the Middle East conflict, which has pushed global crude oil prices higher and increased uncertainty in global financial markets. Rising energy costs are raising fears of inflationary pressure and potential disruptions to global supply chains, prompting risk aversion among investors.

The circuit breaker marks the second such trading halt in South Korea within four sessions, underscoring heightened volatility across Asian markets. Export-oriented economies such as South Korea are particularly sensitive to geopolitical shocks, as global demand expectations and currency stability directly influence corporate earnings outlooks.

Regional markets also showed signs of stress. Early derivatives trading indicated weakness in Indian equities, with GIFT Nifty trading about 3.4 Percent or roughly 800 points lower near 23,770, suggesting a risk-off opening for domestic benchmarks.