SK hynix shatters Q2 earnings record amid AI peak concerns

SK hynix shattered its quarterly earnings record in the second quarter, just three months after setting its previous high.

Still, its shares extended losses Wednesday as the record results failed to meet elevated market expectations, adding to concerns that the artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure investment boom may be losing momentum — a claim the Korean chipmaker dismissed.

During its earnings call, SK hynix said its second-quarter operating profit soared 557.2 percent from a year earlier to 60.54 trillion won ($41.6 billion).

Revenue for the quarter reached 79.32 trillion won, up 256.8 percent year-on-year.

Both revenue and operating profit set new records, surpassing the previous highs of 52.58 trillion won in revenue and 37.6 trillion won in operating profit.

Its operating margin reached 76 percent.

However, the results fell short of brokerages' consensus estimates of 83.94 trillion won in revenue and 63.99 trillion won in operating profit.

The company attributed the strong performance to continued demand driven by expanding AI infrastructure investment, with higher prices ...