SK Hynix tops Samsung as South Korea’s most valuable company

SK Hynix has overtaken Samsung Electronics to become South Korea’s most valuable listed company, driven by surging demand for advanced memory chips used in artificial intelligence systems.

The company’s shares rose 5.6% on June 22, pushing its market capitalisation to about 2,080.4 trillion won ($1.35 trillion), slightly ahead of Samsung’s 2,066.7 trillion won. SK Hynix has now become the world’s most valuable memory chipmaker, Reuters reports. 

The rise has been fueled by strong demand for high-bandwidth memory (HBM) chips, which are critical for AI applications developed by companies such as Nvidia, Google and Microsoft. SK Hynix’s stock has surged more than 340% this year as global AI investment accelerates.

Analysts say the company benefited from early and sustained investment in HBM technology, which offers higher performance and lower power consumption compared to conventional memory chips and is tightly integrated with AI processors.

SK Hynix currently holds around 61% of the global HBM market, compared with Samsung’s 17% and Micron’s 21%.

Samsung, which has led South Korea’s stock market since 2000, noted that its market valuation would be higher if preferred shares were included.

The shift marks a major turnaround for SK Hynix, which nearly collapsed in the early 2000s under heavy debt before being acquired by SK Group. The company returned to strong profitability in 2024 amid the global AI boom.

Industry analysts say SK Hynix is now narrowing the production gap with Samsung in DRAM output and could further strengthen its position in the coming years as AI-driven demand reshapes the semiconductor sector.

By Sabina Mammadli