SK hynix, LG Electronics, Hyundai Motor report 2024 results; SK hynix achieve highest-ever performance

On the corporate front.

SK hynix staged a stellar performance last year on the back of strong demand for AI memory.

Lee Eun-hee has more.

SK hynix, the world's second-largest memory chipmaker, has announced that it recorded its highest-ever revenue and operating profit in 2024, driven by the strong demand for High Bandwidth Memory.

The company said Thursday that its revenue surpassed 66 trillion Korean won or around 46 billion U.S. dollars, marking a 102-percent increase compared to the previous year.

Operating profit turned positive, soaring to just over 16 billion U.S. dollars.

Last year's fourth quarter also saw a record-high operating profit of over 6 billion dollars.

SK hynix reported record revenue, surpassing 2022 by over 14 billion U.S. dollars, and its operating profit exceeded the 2018 peak.

One expert says the first half of this year is expected to be very promising, noting Trump's AI initiative.

"Given the new launch of Trump government, semi-conductor industry in general and HBM in particular, there are a lot of good materials to push SK hynix's stock price at the moment. So it is quite in the short-term based."

Meanwhile, LG Electronics achieved record-high revenue in 2024, reaching approximately 61 billion U.S. dollars, a 6-point 6 percent increase compared to the previous year.

This growth was driven by strong performance in its core home appliance business and expanding automotive electronics sector, which has seen nine years of consecutive growth.

This marks the company's highest revenue in two years.

However, both annual and quarterly operating profit declined, attributed to slower recovery in global consumer electronics demand and rising logistics costs.

The company experienced an "earnings shock" in quarter four, with operating profit halving and falling more than 56-percent year-on-year to over 93 million U.S. dollars.

On the same day, Hyundai Motor also released last year's revenue data, reporting over 175 trillion Korean won or more than 121 billion U.S. dollars, which is up 7-point-7 percent on year, but operating profit declined 5-point-9 percent to around 9-point-7 U.S. dollars.

Hyundai Motor's revenue for the fourth quarter of 2024 rose nearly 12 percent compared to the same period last year, driven by strong sales of high-value models, including hybrid and Genesis vehicles which boosted the average selling price.

However, quarter four operating profit fell 17-percent to almost 2 billion U.S. dollars, impacted by higher incentives, external uncertainties, and a sharp rise in exchange rates.

A Hyundai official stated that despite these challenges, the company continues to grow, supported by strong North American sales and increasing hybrid model sales.

Lee Eun-hee, Arirang News.