Bitcoin Reaches $84,000 Resistance as Korean Tech Stock Losses Deepen KOSPI Losses

Bitcoin liquidity kept its price below $84,000 amid accelerating sell-offs of South Korean technology and semiconductor stocks.

Bitcoin liquidity kept the price of Bitcoin below $84,000 amid a growing sell-off in South Korean technology and semiconductor stocks.

Bitcoin (BTC) bounced back towards $84,000 on Tuesday as crypto markets pared fresh losses for South Korean stock markets.

BTC/USD rose more than 2.5 percent on Tuesday to $8,3944 on Bitstamp, to retrace Monday's decline, TradingView data showed.

BTC/USD hourly chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingView

The gains came as new technology sales surged in South Korea's KOSPI composite index, which extended its losses for the week to 7.4 percent. The index fell below its 200-day moving average for the first time since late July.

One-day chart of KOSPI composite index with 200-day moving average. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingView

Semiconductor stocks came under particular pressure, with SK Hynix falling more than 10 percent, while the defeat exacerbated existing problems for Samsung after it reported lower-than-expected third-quarter earnings last week. Foreign investors have sold about 173 trillion won ($129 billion) worth of SK Hynix and Samsung shares since the start of 2026, the KOSPI's biggest year-to-date sales.

The weakness echoes the sell-off in August, when concerns about the artificial intelligence boom and related corporate debt obligations caused sharp losses that soon spilled over into global markets.

"Investors are angry and looking for an excuse to take advantage of AI-related stocks that have outperformed this year, especially memory stocks," UBP senior equity adviser Wei-Sern Ling told CNBC on Monday.

Ling was among those who saw competition from China as an increasing problem for Korean investors, while acknowledging that the Chinese sector still faces "technological barriers".

In contrast to the August selloff, Bitcoin avoided a copycat move and moved to the top of its local trading range between $80,000 and $87,000.

At the time, analysis attributed bitcoin's relative strength to potential monetary policy easing by central banks. US headline inflation data is due this week ahead of the Federal Reserve's interest rate decision on October 28, with markets expecting rates to remain at current levels of 4-2.75%.

Bitcoin's relative strength has also been buoyed by outflows from U.S. bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) that have seen $451 million in net outflows so far, including $69 million on Monday, despite investors' appetite for bitcoin exposure waning in October.

US views Bitcoin ETF network flows (screenshot). Source: Farside Investors

Traders noted that bulls have struggled to hold above $84,000 on lower timeframes. Data from CoinGlass shows that the thick band of requested liquidity on the exchange's order books is close to that level.