[Anchor]

As the Strait of Hormuz is blocked once again, international oil prices have soared by over 9%, reaching the $80 per barrel level. Overnight, the price of SK Hynix depositary receipts (DRs) listed on the Nasdaq plunged by more than 9%, and other semiconductor stocks also saw significant declines.

Kim Beom-joo reports from New York.

[Reporter]

International oil prices surged after President Trump announced that he would re-impose a blockade on Iran and collect tolls for passage through the Strait of Hormuz.

Brent crude futures rose by 9.6%, and West Texas Intermediate (WTI) futures climbed by 9.4%.

This marks the highest price level in the past month.

[Alexander Morris / CEO of investment firm FM Investments: The blockade has restarted, the ceasefire is in jeopardy, and they are shooting at each other again. The chaos has returned.]

As a result, concerns over rising inflation have caused interest rates to fluctuate.

The yield on the 10-year U.S. Treasury note rose by more than 0.04%, and expert predictions that the Federal Reserve will raise the benchmark interest rate as early as this month have surpassed 40%.

The Nasdaq index, which is home to high-tech companies that rely on raising capital for investment, was immediately affected, falling by 1.6%.

The price of SK Hynix depositary receipts, which closed at $168 on their first day of trading last week, fell by 9.3% today (July 14) to $152.35.

While this is still a premium of about 25% compared to the stock listed in Korea, the price has dropped near the offering price of $149 in just two days, appearing to lose the momentum seen at the time of its initial listing.

SanDisk also fell by 12.6%, and Micron dropped by 4.4%, as semiconductor-related stocks struggled simultaneously.

The S&P 500 index fell by 0.8%, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average also declined by 0.3%, making it a day where the global financial market felt the shock.

(Reported by Lee Hee-hoon | Video by Lee Seung-jin)