Morgan Stanley, a global investment bank, is facing scrutiny from local authorities due to suspicious trading activities involving SK hynix shares. The bank released a report titled "Winter Looms" on Sept. 15, predicting a pessimistic outlook for the chip giant's earnings. This report led to a significant drop in SK hynix's target price to 120,000 won and a downgrade in the investment recommendation from "overweight" to "underweight." The backlash from local investors and analysts accused Morgan Stanley of intentionally driving down SK hynix's stock price. The situation escalated when it was revealed that Morgan Stanley's Seoul branch executed a sell order for 1.01 million shares of SK hynix on Sept. 13, just two days before the bearish report was released. This raised suspicions of insider trading, prompting investigations by the Korea Exchange and the Financial Supervisory Service. The case highlights the rarity of "sell" reports in the Korean market, where such negative outlooks are not common due to concerns about damaging relationships with companies.