SK Hynix reports stronger-than-expected Q4 earnings driven by soaring AI demand

SK Hynix Surpasses Expectations with Strong Q4 Earnings

SEOUL, Jan 28 (Reuters) — SK Hynix, a leading South Korean semiconductor manufacturer, announced on Wednesday that its profits for the October to December quarter exceeded forecasts. This impressive performance was largely driven by soaring demand for artificial intelligence technologies, which has resulted in higher prices for both cutting-edge and traditional memory chips.

The company, which supplies chips to Nvidia, reported an operating profit of 19.2 trillion won (approximately $13.5 billion) for the fourth quarter, based on calculations by Reuters.

This result marks a significant increase from the 8.1 trillion won profit recorded during the same period last year, and it also surpasses the 17.7 trillion won average estimate compiled by LSEG SmartEstimate, which prioritizes analysts with a proven track record.

SK Hynix is scheduled to provide further details on its fourth-quarter financial results during a briefing on Thursday.

Exchange rate: $1 = 1,422.2400 won

Reported by Heekyong Yang; Edited by Edwina Gibbs