South Korean technology shares led a broad recovery in artificial-intelligence stocks on Wednesday after SK Hynix reported a sharp rise in quarterly operating profit and announced a further 60 trillion won ($45 billion) return to shareholders. The company’s outlook for persistent memory shortages added to investor optimism, helping the Kospi rise 6.6%.
SK Hynix results drive market rebound
SK Hynix shares gained 11%, while Samsung Electronics rose 9% in South Korea. The advance also spread to U.S. premarket trading, where Micron Technology and SanDisk each increased 4%.
According to CoinDesk, citing Bloomberg, SK Hynix recorded September-quarter operating profit of 83.3 trillion won ($62.5 billion). That represented a sevenfold increase and exceeded analyst expectations by more than 7%.
The memory-chip producer also said it plans to return another 60 trillion won, or about $45 billion, through share buybacks and dividends during the remainder of the fiscal year. Buybacks reduce the number of shares in circulation, while dividends provide direct payments to shareholders; both can influence how investors assess a company’s use of cash.
Memory supply remains central to AI trade
SK Hynix said its capacity for conventional memory and high-bandwidth memory is sold out through 2029. It expects shortages to continue through at least 2030.
High-bandwidth memory is used in advanced computing systems, including infrastructure supporting artificial-intelligence applications. The company’s comments suggest that demand for memory products remains strong enough to support chipmakers’ earnings, even as investors continue to question the cost of building and financing AI infrastructure.
The gains extend a recovery in AI-related stocks over the past several days. Those shares had faced weeks of pressure as market participants debated whether spending on AI infrastructure could justify the large sums being committed to the sector.
The latest move therefore reflects two developments at once: stronger-than-expected financial results from a major memory supplier and renewed attention to the supply constraints that could support future chip revenue. It does not remove investor concerns about the broader expense and funding requirements of AI development.
Moneyiar market picture
Moneyiar market data at the stated times showed mixed short-term performance among selected digital assets:
- AKEDO (AKE) was $0.031015752, up 0.8% over 24 hours and 2.5% over seven days, as of October 25, 2026, at 22:39 +03:30.
- USD.AI (CHIP) was $0.0443846724, down 0.29% over 24 hours but up 9.36% over seven days, as of October 25, 2026, at 22:39 +03:30.
- Billions Network (BILL) was $0.0139971939, down 0.59% over 24 hours and up 10.04% over seven days, as of September 21, 2026, at 01:39 +03:30.
- Loaded Lions (LION) was $0.0011817703, down 2.39% over 24 hours and 3.06% over seven days, as of October 25, 2026, at 22:38 +03:30.
Bitcoin also recorded a modest rebound, rising to $81,700 as the chip-led recovery in Asian markets extended into cryptocurrency trading.
