Seoul, Jan 20, 2026, 00:18 KST — Market closed.
- Samsung Electronics ended Monday up 0.27%, closing at 149,300 won after hitting a high of 150,600.
- A filing revealed the late chairman’s widow agreed to a trust deal to offload 15 million shares by June 30.
- Investors are focused on the chatter around U.S. chip tariffs and Samsung’s earnings call scheduled for Jan. 29.
Samsung Electronics shares ended Monday at a record high of 149,300 won, up 0.27%, after touching 150,600 briefly during intraday trading. With Seoul markets closed ahead of Tuesday’s session, investors are eager to see if the recent rally in major chip stocks continues.
The move is significant because the stock drives South Korea’s benchmark Kospi, which closed Monday at a record 4,904.66, up 1.32%. According to Heungkuk Securities data cited by Korea JoongAng Daily, Samsung and SK hynix made up 64.3% of the Kospi’s market cap gain over the past month. That’s noteworthy as policy risks loom, with U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick warning memory chipmakers they could face a “100 percent tariff” or be forced to “build in America.”
Hong Ra-hee, widow of the late Samsung chairman Lee Kun-hee, agreed to a trust deal with Shinhan Bank on Jan. 9, according to Pulse citing regulatory filings. The trust covers 15 million Samsung Electronics shares, worth roughly 2.085 trillion won based on the 139,000-won closing price that day. Shinhan Bank must offload these shares by June 30, well before an inheritance tax installment comes due in April.
Valuation concerns are growing as the rally pushes on. Samsung’s price-to-book ratio (PBR), which measures market value against net assets, climbed to 2.58—well above its six-year average of 1.54 since 2020, according to Seoul Economic Daily. “The overall KOSPI market is trending upward amid favorable fund flows including foreign net buying,” said Kim Jae-seung at Hyundai Motor Securities. But Lee Kyung-min of Daishin Securities cautioned that an earnings-season “adjustment process” might be inevitable after the recent streak of gains. Seoul Economic Daily
The broader index also showed strength. The Kospi hit an intraday peak of 4,917.37 on Monday, then closed just above 4,900, marking its 12th consecutive session at record levels, according to BusinessKorea.
Global semiconductor news stayed upbeat. Micron Technology’s $1.8 billion acquisition of a Powerchip fab in Taiwan highlights the rush among memory makers to boost capacity. TrendForce noted this deal might push 2027’s global DRAM supply estimates higher. Micron CEO Sanjay Mehrotra expects tight memory markets to stretch beyond 2026. Micron, Samsung, and SK hynix remain the top three suppliers of high-bandwidth memory (HBM), the stacked chips powering AI systems.
Tariffs remain a clear flashpoint. South Korea announced it will seek talks with the U.S. to secure better terms on memory-chip import tariffs, Reuters reported Sunday, following the introduction of new U.S. restrictions on certain advanced computing chips. According to South Korea’s trade minister, the fresh tariffs are expected to have only a minor effect on South Korean companies. Still, investors have swiftly factored in the headline risk.
But memory remains memory. Talk around Micron’s expansion has reignited a common concern: robust pricing might accelerate capacity builds, paving the way for the next glut—even if demand seems strong today. This boom-and-bust pattern makes some investors hesitant to pile into chip stocks at new highs.
Samsung’s next major milestone will be its Q4 2025 earnings release, set for 10 a.m. on Jan. 29, per its investor relations site. Earlier this month, the company forecasted roughly 93 trillion won in sales and around 20 trillion won in operating profit for the quarter.
Once trading picks up again in Seoul, all eyes will be on whether Samsung can stay above 150,000 won during intraday moves and if selling tied to the family trust weighs on gains. The coming week hinges on three key factors: tariff developments, evidence that the Kospi rally is spreading beyond just a few chip leaders, and Samsung’s earnings call on Jan. 29.
