SK Hynix overtakes Samsung as Korea's most valuable company

What happened

SK Hynix's shares traded up 5.7% on June 22, bringing its market capitalization to 2,082.5 trillion won ($1.35 trillion（約220兆円）), surpassing Samsung Electronics at 2,081.3 trillion won. The chipmaker, which supplies high-bandwidth memory (HBM) chips to AI customers such as Nvidia and Google, has posted a more than 340% share rally this year and is now the world's most valuable memory chipmaker.

Why it matters

SK Hynix has emerged as one of the biggest beneficiaries of the global AI boom. The shift in the semiconductor industry—where customized AI memory has moved from a commodity into a critical component powering applications like ChatGPT—has fundamentally changed economics and allowed SK Hynix to establish itself as the market leader. This marks a dramatic reversal for a company that two decades ago nearly collapsed under debt and was on the verge of being sold to Micron in 2002.

What to watch

SK Hynix reported an annual operating loss of 7.73 trillion won in 2023 during a severe memory-price downturn, but recovered to post an annual operating profit of 23.5 trillion won in 2024, described as a record at the time. Samsung has stated that its market capitalization calculation should include preferred shares, which would bring its value to around 2,252 trillion won.