Seoul: Chip giant SK hynix Inc. is expected to post record-breaking earnings for the second quarter, buoyed by its dominant leadership in the high bandwidth memory (HBM) market, while its rival Samsung Electronics Co. has released lower-than-expected earnings guidance, data showed Wednesday.
According to Yonhap News Agency, in a survey compiled by Yonhap Infomax, the financial data arm of Yonhap News Agency, SK hynix is forecast to post 20.6 trillion won (US$14.9 billion) in sales for the April-June period, up 25.5 percent from a year earlier. Its operating profit is predicted to surge 65 percent on-year to 9 trillion won. If the chipmaker reports earnings in line with projections, both figures would surpass its previous quarterly records of 19.8 trillion won in sales and 8.1 trillion won in operating profit, set in the fourth quarter of last year.
The results are driven by SK hynix's competitive edge in HBM technology, which is increasingly in demand as global AI development accelerates. A separate report by market tracker Counterpoint Research showed SK hynix logged $15.5 billion in memory market sales in the second quarter, on par with its larger rival Samsung Electronics, thanks to strong HBM performance. With AI chip demand surging globally, market watchers expect SK hynix to further cement its leadership in the HBM segment, citing its technological and pricing advantages. SK hynix is scheduled to release its second-quarter earnings Thursday.
In contrast, Samsung Electronics announced earlier this month that its second-quarter operating profit is projected to tumble 56 percent on-year to 4.6 trillion won, sharply missing market expectations of 6.1 trillion won. Analysts attributed the earnings shortfall to its semiconductor business. A delay in supplying HBM chips to AI giant Nvidia Corp. dented profits, and the company also increased its inventory amid U.S. export restrictions on advanced AI chips to China. As a result, Samsung expanded its inventory loss reserves to reflect potential depreciation in inventory value, further weighing on operating profit. Samsung Electronics' full earnings report is due July 31.
Meanwhile, LG Electronics also posted disappointing second-quarter guidance. In a preview released July 7, the company estimated its operating profit to have dropped 46.6 percent on-year to 639.1 billion won for the April-June period. Its flagship TV business continued to struggle, offsetting modest gains in conventional home appliances and business-to-business segments. LG Electronics will release its full quarterly earnings Friday.