[Edaily Reporter SOYEON KIM ] Riding the wave of a memory chip boom, SamsungElectronics posted an operating profit of over 89 trillion won in the second quarter of this year. In particular, excluding provisions for performance bonuses, its actual quarterly operating profit is estimated to have exceeded 100 trillion won. A quarterly operating profit of 100 trillion won is unprecedented in the history of Korean corporations.

SamsungElectronics announced on the 7th that it posted an operating profit of 89.4 trillion won on a consolidated basis for the second quarter of this year. This represents a staggering 1,810.26% surge compared to the same period last year. Following an operating profit of 57.23 trillion won in the first quarter, the company surpassed 89 trillion won in the second quarter. This is more than double last year’s annual operating profit (43.6011 trillion won). Revenue for the second quarter of this year reached 171 trillion won, a 129.31% increase compared to the same period last year.

Since SamsungElectronics’ latest earnings fully reflect semiconductor performance bonuses, its quarterly operating profit is estimated to have exceeded 100 trillion won, excluding provisions. Based on a simple calculation that excludes approximately 15 trillion won—equivalent to 10% of the combined operating profits for the first and second quarters—second-quarter operating profit is estimated at about 104 trillion won.

According to financial information provider FnGuide, the consensus estimate (average of securities analysts’ forecasts) for SamsungElectronics’ second-quarter earnings was in the 85 trillion won range, meaning these results exceeded market expectations. It appears that the semiconductor supercycle drove a significant increase in demand for artificial intelligence (AI) memory semiconductors, and the concurrent expansion in demand for general-purpose DRAM also contributed substantially to profits.

It is also noteworthy that this operating profit exceeded the approximately 81.9 trillion won in operating profit recorded by NVIDIA in the first quarter of fiscal year 2027 (February–April 2026). SamsungElectronics has thus set a new record for the highest quarterly operating profit among global tech companies.

Furthermore, the trend of improving earnings in the second half of the year is also expected to be steep. The consensus estimate for third-quarter operating profit stands at 110.3442 trillion won. SamsungElectronics’ annual operating profit is projected to reach 370 trillion won.

SamsungElectronics is rapidly expanding the share of high-value-added products by securing a leading position not only in standard DRAM but also in High Bandwidth Memory (HBM). Analysts note that this reflects a trend of structural profit improvement that goes beyond a simple increase in volume. Exchange rates also provided a favorable environment. Given the company’s high reliance on semiconductor exports, the appreciation of the won against the dollar is believed to have had a positive impact on earnings.

According to market research firm DRAMeXchange, the average fixed transaction price for general-purpose PC DRAM (DDR4 8Gb 1Gx8) in June was $21, a 5% increase from the previous month ($20). This is more than seven times higher than the price at the start of the survey in June 2016 ($2.9) and marks an all-time high. TrendForce, the parent company of DRAMeXchange, stated, “We expect PC DRAM suppliers to take turns raising prices and coordinate their price hikes with one another in July and August as well,” and raised its forecast for the quarter-over-quarter increase in PC DRAM spot prices for the third quarter from 8–13% to 15–20%. The forecast for the fourth-quarter increase was also revised upward from 0–5% to 3–8%.

SamsungElectronics has benefited the most from these price increases, thanks to its world-class memory production capacity. Although the company did not disclose specific results by business division in this preliminary earnings report, it is estimated that the Semiconductor (DS) division accounted for more than 90% of its profits.

There are also forecasts that the average operating profit margin for major memory manufacturers this year will reach 75–80%. According to the Memory Tracker by market research firm Counterpoint Research, the average operating profit margin for major memory manufacturers—SamsungElectronics (DS division), INICS Corporation, and Micron—is expected to be 75–80% in the second quarter of this year. The quarterly growth rate for these three companies is expected to reach 50%, and their combined revenue is projected to exceed approximately 280 trillion won. Consequently, the total memory market size is also expected to surpass 350 trillion won, setting a new all-time high.

In contrast to the DS division, SamsungElectronics’ Device Experience (DX) division is expected to have performed relatively poorly. The MX division, which oversees the smartphone business, saw its profitability constrained by the burden of “chipflation” caused by rising memory prices. The Home Appliances (DA) and Visual Display (VD) divisions are also expected to continue posting losses in the second quarter of this year.

SamsungElectronics plans to hold an earnings conference call on the 30th to strengthen communication with investors. The company will accept questions in advance regarding its current business status and other matters to enhance understanding, and will provide answers during the call.