Samsung Electronics estimates nearly three-fold profit surge as memory prices skyrocket

South Korea's Samsung Electronics expects its profits to triple successful the last 3 months of past year, reaching a grounds high, arsenic representation prices surge amid booming request tied to artificial intelligence. 

The world's largest representation chipmaker estimated that operating nett reached 20 trillion won and consolidated income of astir 93 trillion won successful the 4th quarter, according to an net guidance released Thursday. 

The nett projections people a important betterment from a twelvemonth earlier and would surpass Samsung's long-standing grounds of 17.6 trillion won acceptable successful the 3rd 4th of 2018. 

The surge comes arsenic chipmakers similar Nvidia clamor for constricted supplies of representation chips utilized for AI applications. 

As representation companies prioritize capableness to conscionable that lucrative demand, it has contributed to a shortage crossed the broader market, affecting chips utilized successful idiosyncratic computers and mobile devices.

"The representation marketplace has entered a 'Hyper-Bull' phase, with existent conditions eclipsing the historical 2018 peak. Supplier leverage is astatine an all-time high, driven by an insatiable request for AI and server capacity," Counterpoint Research said successful a study Wednesday. 

The marketplace watcher estimates representation prices surged 40%-50% successful the last 4th of 2025, and expects akin gains successful the archetypal 4th of 2026, followed by a astir 20% emergence successful the 2nd quarter.

While these marketplace dynamics have pushed manufacturing costs for astir user electronics makers, they person been a boon for representation giants similar Samsung and its main competitors successful the space, SK Hynix and Micron. 

Samsung shares person gained implicit 145% implicit the past 12 months and were up 0.5% connected Thursday successful choppy trading. 

The user tech elephantine continues to way SK Hynix successful high-bandwidth representation (HBM) chips utilized successful AI processors similar those from Nvidia. Expanding its HBM accumulation capableness is expected to beryllium a large absorption for the institution successful the caller year.

Samsung is acceptable to merchandise its audited net and clasp its quarterly net telephone aboriginal this month.