Korean storage giants will announce their Q4 performance next week! The explosive performance is expected to become a "catalyst" for Korean stocks and semiconductor sector.

Against the backdrop of a "super cycle" in the storage chip industry, South Korea's two major storage chip giants, SK Hynix and Samsung Electronics, are expected to release results that will likely demonstrate strong momentum driving the South Korean stock market and the broader semiconductor industry. SK Hynix is set to announce its fourth quarter and full year 2025 results on January 29. Market expectations currently project SK Hynix fourth quarter revenue at 30.7 trillion Korean won, with operating profit estimated at 16.18 trillion Korean won; full year revenue is forecasted at 95.21 trillion Korean won, with operating profit expected to be 44.23 trillion Korean won. These figures are all expected to set new quarterly and annual records. Strong demand for memory chips and higher selling prices are expected to solidify SK Hynix's profit growth trajectory. KB Securities analysis points out that the DRAM business was the main driver of SK Hynix's fourth quarter performance growth last year. It is worth noting that SK Hynix approved a 19 trillion Korean won investment plan last week to build a factory dedicated to HBM advanced packaging testing in South Korea, expected to be completed by the end of 2027. The company also plans to open a new chip factory in Icheon, South Korea three months ahead of schedule in February 2027. Additionally, in a regulatory filing in December last year, SK Hynix disclosed that it is considering listing on the US stock market. On the same day that SK Hynix releases its fourth quarter financial report, another storage chip giant, Samsung Electronics, will also announce its results. Samsung's preliminary results released earlier this month show a fourth quarter operating profit of 20 trillion Korean won (approximately $138 billion USD), a 208% increase year-on-year and surpassing analyst average expectations; revenue increased by 23% year-on-year to 93 trillion Korean won, also setting a historical record. Analysts point out that Samsung's preliminary fourth quarter 2025 operating profit margin reached 21.5%, indicating that it will benefit from strong demand for traditional DRAM, High Bandwidth Memory (HBM), and NAND flash memory chips. The operating profit margin for DRAM in the fourth quarter may exceed 50% and is expected to further increase in the first quarter of 2026; traditional DRAM contributed to Samsung's higher revenue. Its leading position in the global NAND flash memory chip market is also expected to contribute to profit growth in 2026. Against the backdrop of the AI infrastructure boom driving explosive demand for storage chips, the stock prices of SK Hynix and Samsung have both experienced significant gains over the past year, leading to historic breakthroughs in the South Korean stock market. The Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) briefly surpassed 5000 points on Thursday, marking a milestone and strengthening South Korean President Yim Jong-moon's commitment to addressing long-standing corporate governance flaws that have dragged down valuation. The index has surged over 95% in the past twelve months, becoming the best-performing benchmark index globally. If current investor expectations for SK Hynix and Samsung's performance are met when their financial reports are released, confidence in the high boom of the storage industry is expected to continue to spread to a wider range of the semiconductor industry, helping to maintain the upward trend of the South Korean stock market. Eun-Bo Jeong, CEO of the Korea Exchange, previously stated that as South Korea continues to advance reforms to enhance shareholder returns and attract global capital, the current rally in the South Korean stock market is expected to continue leading globally. Jeong mentioned the Kospi index in an interview last Friday, stating, "The Kospi index is approaching 5000 points, but I think it is possible to go beyond that, even to 6000 points." While he did not provide a specific timeline for reaching 6000 points, he added, "South Korea's core industries such as semiconductors, defense, and shipbuilding are continuously strengthening their competitiveness, which seems to be leading to a new round of value appreciation in the stock market." Kang Dae-kwon, Chief Investment Officer at Seoul Life Asset Management, predicts that the Kospi index may reach 6000 points within two months. He stated, "This is just the beginning. Kospi has not yet seen a revaluation in terms of valuation, this is just normalization. I don't think 5000 points is too high a level."