Kospi surges 6.6% as SK hynix delivers record profit
The chipmaker climbed 10.9% after quarterly revenue passed 100 trillion won and it outlined more shareholder returns.
South Korea's Kospi jumped 6.63% to close at 6,012.44 on Wednesday as chip shares rallied after SK hynix reported record quarterly results. SK hynix finished 10.89% higher, while Samsung Electronics gained 9.01%.
SK hynix reported third-quarter revenue of 104.62 trillion won and operating profit of 83.33 trillion won. Revenue rose about 328% from a year earlier and operating profit increased about 632%. Quarterly sales passed 100 trillion won for the first time.
The company plans roughly 100 trillion won of shareholder returns for 2026, including earlier announced measures. Its board approved a 14 trillion won third-quarter cash dividend and a 20 trillion won share repurchase. Half of that new repurchase is intended for cancellation; the other half is for employee compensation, rather than part of the shareholder-return total.
Strong demand for AI memory and higher-value products supported the results. The company expects demand to exceed supply through 2030 and has long-term agreements covering more than half of its production capacity for 2027 and 2028. Those are management's forecasts and contract disclosures, not a guarantee of future earnings. The financial results remain preliminary.
