SK hynix market value surpasses $1 trillion, joining Samsung and TSMC as Asia's trillion-dollar chip makers

SK hynix, a South Korean memory chip maker that supplies Nvidia with advanced high-bandwidth memory, reached a market value exceeding $1 trillion on Wednesday. Shares were up more than 11 percent in early afternoon trade.

The company becomes one of just three $1 trillion companies in Asia, alongside Samsung Electronics and TSMC. Samsung's market capitalisation also topped $1 trillion this month.

SK hynix's surge follows a net profit increase of almost 400 percent in the first quarter, driven by global demand for AI computing hardware used in data centres that train and run chatbots, image generators, and agents (AI systems that autonomously perform tasks).