In the era of AI semiconductors driven by HBM and eSSD memory, SK Hynix is enjoying its heyday, recording its highest quarterly sales since its founding.

SK Hynix announced in a conference call on the 25th that its second quarter sales this year reached 16.4233 trillion won, its highest quarterly performance ever.

SK Hynix announced that its second quarter sales reached 16.4233 trillion won, operating profit reached 5.4685 trillion won, and net profit reached 4.12 trillion won. The operating profit margin reached 33%, and the net profit margin reached 25%.

The previous record quarterly performance was KRW 13.811 trillion, achieved in the second quarter of 2022, driven by increased demand for IT products amid the pandemic, marking the highest performance in two years. Operating profit also reached the 5 trillion won level for the first time in six years since the 5-6 trillion won operating profit in the second and third quarters of 2018, which was the peak semiconductor boom period.

This record-breaking quarterly performance appears to have been driven by strong demand for AI memory, led by HBM. The expansion of AI servers is driving a surge in new data center demand, while eSSD sales are also driving performance growth.

SK Hynix explained, “Sales increased by 32% compared to the first quarter due to strong demand for AI memory such as HBM and eSSD, as well as continued price increases for DRAM and NAND products overall.” “Furthermore, with increased sales centered on premium products and the exchange rate effect, the operating profit margin for the second quarter rose by 10 percentage points compared to the previous quarter to record 33%, and the company achieved good results that met market expectations.”

HBM sales increased by more than 80% compared to the previous quarter and more than 250% compared to the same period last year, and the sales proportion of high value-added products such as HBM3E and server DRAM, which began mass production and supply in March, increased.

For NAND, sales expanded, primarily driven by eSSDs and mobile products. In particular, eSSD sales continued their rapid growth, increasing by approximately 50% compared to the first quarter. SK Hynix emphasized, "Since the fourth quarter of last year, the average selling price (ASP) across all NAND products has continued to rise, resulting in two consecutive quarters of profitability."

Demand for memory for AI servers is expected to continue to increase in the second half of the year. SK Hynix forecasts that as new PC and mobile products supporting on-device AI are released to the market, sales of high-performance memory for these products will increase, while demand for general memory products will also show a clear upward trend.

SK Hynix, which announced plans to solidify its HBM technology leadership by expanding sales of high-capacity eSSDs and mass-producing 12-layer HBM3E products within the third quarter, plans to maintain its competitive edge in the DDR5 sector, where it supplies server products with the highest capacity of 256GB, by releasing 32Gb DDR5 server DRAM and MCRDIMM for high-performance computing in the second half of the year.

Currently, the Cheongju M15X is under construction with the goal of mass production in the second half of 2025, and the Cheongju Semiconductor Cluster Fab is scheduled to begin construction in March of next year and be completed in May 2027. Therefore, capital expenditures may increase more than expected, so securing financial soundness is expected to be key.

SK Hynix CFO Kim Woo-hyun said, “While making essential investments during the second quarter under a profitability-focused investment policy, the company was able to reduce its debt by 4.3 trillion won compared to the first quarter.” He added, “Based on our stable financial structure, we will focus on developing cutting-edge process technologies and high-performance products to further solidify our position as a leading AI memory company.”