SEOUL, July 9, 2026, 00:01 KST
- Samsung Electronics KRX:005930 said it expects Q2 operating profit of 89.4 trillion won on sales of 171 trillion won, putting group margin around 52%.
- KOSPI in South Korea ended the session down 5.35%, now more than 20% below its high from June 22. Samsung dropped 6.3%, while SK Hynix KRX:000660 lost 5.7%.
- SK Hynix’s Nasdaq ADR bookbuild, which raised about $28 billion, is now the main test for offshore AI memory demand.
Korea Exchange wasn’t trading regular hours at the dateline. The main session runs 9:00 a.m. to 3:20 p.m. KST. Seoul had just passed midnight Thursday, so the next open will show if sellers were pausing or if Wednesday’s drop keeps going.
Samsung posted a strong result, but not in the way investors wanted. Its guidance shows the memory upcycle is already baked into the numbers. Now the market is watching to see how long the price cycle holds up with group operating margin over 50%.
| Samsung metric | Q2 2026 guide | Q1 2026 actual | Q2 2025 actual | Investor read |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sales | 171 trln won | 133.87 trln won | 74.57 trln won | Sales more than doubled over the year |
| Operating profit | 89.4 trln won | 57.23 trln won | 4.68 trln won | Operating profit is about 19x from a year ago |
| Operating margin | 52.3% | 42.8% | 6.3% | Investors are looking for sustained momentum |
Samsung provided Q2 outlook along with Q1 and prior-year numbers in its official release. Samsung Global Newsroom Bottom line for investors: with margins here, a minor DRAM price drop can hit the model harder than a record quarter helps.
That’s at the heart of the selloff. Samsung topped the LSEG SmartEstimate of 87.3 trillion won, Reuters said, but shares still sank 6.9% Tuesday after being down as much as 10.1%. Albert Yong at Petra Capital said the result “had largely been priced in.” Morningstar’s Jing Jie Yu cited “more moderate DRAM price hikes” than some investors wanted. Reuters
| Market signal | Latest move | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Samsung Electronics | 277,500 won, dropped 6.25%; 52-week top was 374,500 won | Stock trades about 26% under its high, even with record profit |
| SK Hynix | 2,076,000 won, fell 5.68%; 52-week top 2,987,000 won | Now 31% off its high ahead of the planned Nasdaq listing |
| KOSPI | 7,246.79, lost 5.35% | Down over 20% from the record close set June 22 |
| PHLX chip index / SOXX | SOX lost 4.7% Tuesday; SOXX sits 16% under its late-June high | That drop took out a key U.S. technical support |
The technical setup has shifted, raising the bar for bulls. MarketWatch said the PHLX Semiconductor Index just broke below its 50-day moving average for the first time since April. MarketWatch In the U.S. session on Wednesday, iShares Semiconductor ETF NASDAQ:SOXX edged up 0.36% at 14:46 UTC, Micron Technology NASDAQ:MU slipped 0.5%, and Nvidia NASDAQ:NVDA was nearly flat.
This isn’t about the balance sheet. Samsung started Q2 holding 119.24 trillion won in net cash, following first-quarter operating cash flow of 40.27 trillion won. The market is pulling back on the stock because of earnings duration, not worries about funding.
SK Hynix is on the other side. Reuters said the ADR sale got enough demand to cover books several times over. The chipmaker is selling 17.79 million new shares via ADRs, with 10 ADRs for each ordinary share. The reference price came in at 242,500 won per ADR and proceeds will go to South Korean fabs and gear, including an EUV scanner from ASML Holding AMS:ASML.
The gap is what matters. Investors want AI memory stocks, but they are buying new U.S. listings instead of running after SK Hynix in Seoul after its big move. Dave Mazza at Roundhill Investments said SK Hynix’s U.S. listing is more about “accessibility discount” than “quality discount.” Sundeep Gantori from Standard Chartered called the memory market “mid-cycle stage.” Reuters
Market structure is back in focus. South Korean officials said they are watching risks from stock swings, with regulators noting single-stock leveraged ETFs linked to chip stocks. Reuters said the KOSPI drop on Wednesday triggered a sidecar curb and foreigners bought 335.9 billion won in shares after 13 days of selling. The won traded firmer at 1,498.5 per dollar.
Investors are watching Samsung’s division margins, DRAM and NAND price outlook, and customer orders tied to AI data centers rather than just headline profit. Samsung will give its full Q2 results on July 30. SK Hynix is set to update prices after the Seoul market shuts Thursday, ahead of Nasdaq’s open on Friday.
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