Direxion Daily Semiconductors Bull 3x Shares (SOXL) plummeted 12.10% intraday on Thursday, reflecting a sharp downturn in the leveraged semiconductor sector.

The move coincided with a broad selloff in semiconductor stocks across global markets. Asian markets extended the prior session's US semiconductor rout, with SK Hynix plunging over 11% and Samsung Electronics falling more than 8%, while Micron Technology and SanDisk each dropped over 8%, leading storage names lower. South Korean regulators announced higher minimum deposit requirements for chip leveraged ETFs, dampening sentiment for leveraged products like SOXL.

Market sentiment was further pressured by the latest Bank of America fund manager survey, which revealed that 82% of respondents view long semiconductor positions as the most crowded trade in the market. Hedge funds have been net sellers of chip hardware stocks for consecutive weeks, while growing concerns intensified over whether the surge in AI capital expenditure can translate into sustained earnings growth across the semiconductor supply chain. As a 3x leveraged product tracking semiconductor companies, SOXL amplifies movements in the underlying index, magnifying losses when the sector faces pressure from profit-taking and crowded trade unwinding.