SK Hynix Inc. reported a record high operating profit of ₩8.08 trillion for the fourth quarter of 2024, surpassing market expectations and beating Samsung Electronics Co.'s anticipated operating profit of ₩6.5 trillion. The South Korean memory chip manufacturer, a key supplier to Nvidia Corp., attributed its strong performance to robust demand for high-bandwidth memory (HBM) chips used in artificial intelligence (AI) applications. HBM sales accounted for 40% of SK Hynix's total DRAM revenue during the quarter. Despite the record profits, SK Hynix's stock fell 3% on the day of the announcement due to concerns over declining demand for commodity memory chips used in smartphones and computers, amid economic uncertainty and increased competition from Chinese manufacturers. The company also warned of a steeper demand decline for these commodity chips in the first quarter of 2025, projecting a 10-20% decrease in DRAM and NAND shipments compared to the previous quarter. Looking ahead, SK Hynix expects HBM sales to more than double in 2025, driven by continued investment in AI servers by major tech companies.