Samsung Electronics, a leading player in the AI chip market, surpassed a market value of $1 trillion for the first time on Wednesday, driving the Kospi stock index in Seoul to historic peaks. The company, in competition with local counterpart SK hynix, plays a crucial role in supplying high-performance chips sought after by companies striving to keep pace with the rapidly advancing artificial intelligence sector.
In its recent announcement of record first-quarter profits, Samsung highlighted its growing significance as the South Korean government aims to establish the country among the top three global AI powers alongside the United States and China. The surge in Samsung’s stock value, rising by almost 12 percent during morning trading, propelled the company past the $1 trillion mark, while SK hynix also saw a rise of approximately 10 percent.
The soaring performance of the Kospi index, breaching the 7,000-point milestone for the first time, mirrored the overall positive trend in the South Korean market. Samsung’s stock has seen a remarkable increase of about 300 percent over the past year, supported by the flourishing AI sector driving growth in South Korea.
Bloomberg News reported that Samsung became only the second Asian company, following Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing, to reach a market capitalization of $1 trillion. With a surge in operating profit by 750 percent year-on-year to a first-quarter high of 57.2 trillion won ($39.3 billion), the company attributed this remarkable performance to its AI technology advancements and strategic market approach. Samsung foresees a continuous strong demand for memory as the AI infrastructure expansion gathers momentum, anticipating robust growth in the second quarter.