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SEOUL, July 29 (Yonhap) -- SK hynix Inc. said Wednesday that its revenue and operating profit reached record highs in the second quarter, driven by robust demand for high bandwidth memory (HBM) chips and other memory products.

Net profit came to a record 93.92 trillion won (US$64.6 billion) for the April-June period, surged 1,242.5 percent from a year earlier, according to the company's regulatory filing.

Its operating income soared 557.2 percent on-year to 60.54 trillion won. Sales increased 256.8 percent to 79.31 trillion won.

The company's operating profit margin reached a record high of 76 percent for the second quarter, compared with 75 percent in the first quarter.

The earnings exceeded market expectations. The average estimate of net profit by analysts stood at 63.55 trillion won, according to a survey by Yonhap Infomax, the financial data firm of Yonhap News Agency.

The strong results are expected to ease investor concerns over a potential artificial intelligence (AI) bubble and fears that demand for AI chips may have peaked, which recently triggered a sharp decline in technology stocks.

SK hynix has cemented its leadership in the HBM market by moving early to develop the advanced memory chips, becoming a key supplier to Nvidia as demand for AI accelerators has surged.

According to market research firm Counterpoint Research, SK hynix accounted for 58 percent of the global HBM market by revenue in the first quarter, maintaining its position as the industry's leading supplier. Its longtime rival Samsung Electronics and Micron Technology each held a 21 percent share.

The company's HBM leadership helped propel it past Samsung Electronics to become South Korea's most valuable listed company by market capitalization for the first time in 25 years in June.

khj@yna.co.kr

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