South Korean media reported that as the price of general-purpose DRAM used in servers, personal computers (PCs) and mobile devices continues to rise, market analysts generally expect that the operating profit rate of general-purpose DRAM of memory manufacturer SK Hynix may exceed 70%. This extremely high profit level is the first time it has occurred in nearly 30 years since the memory super boom cycle in 1995.
South Korea's Chosun Ilbo quoted industry insiders as saying that under the influence of insufficient supply of general-purpose DRAM, the price increase momentum is expected to continue. If the operating profit rate of general-purpose DRAM can exceed 70%, it will be the first time since 1995. The prosperity of that year was driven by the expansion of PC popularity and the release of "Windows 95" by Microsoft (MS), which caused the DRAM market to enter a super boom cycle, driving the DRAM operating profit rate of memory companies to exceed 70% for a time.
Market analysts believe that the main reason for SK Hynix’s high profits is supply shortage. Although demand for general-purpose DRAM is increasing, SK Hynix's DRAM production capacity is concentrated on high-bandwidth memory (HBM), resulting in a supply shortage of general-purpose DRAM that is expected to continue. In this regard, market analysts said that the operating profit rate of DRAM for servers is expected to reach 70% by the end of 2025. If the supply shortage continues for a long time and prices remain strong in the first quarter of 2026, the operating profit margin of general DRAM will also exceed 70%.
In fact, SK Hynix pointed out in its financial report meeting in the third quarter of 2025 that not only HBM, but also the supply of general-purpose DRAM for servers, PCs, mobile phones, etc. in 2026 has been roughly sold out, indicating that its production capacity has been limited.
The report stated that another important factor causing the structural shortage of general-purpose DRAM is that competitors’ production capacity has mainly shifted to HBM. Market analysts said that SK Hynix’s new M15x wafer fab and Samsung Electronics’ P4 and other new production lines will be mainly used for HBM production. Therefore, general DRAM production capacity expansion faces difficulties, and the DRAM market other than HBM is expected to continue to face structural supply shortages.
At this stage, SK Hynix’s competitors, Samsung Electronics and Micron, are struggling to keep up with the expansion in demand. Among them, although Micron has made partial revisions to its general DRAM production plan, it is still not enough to meet the rapidly growing demand. Relevant people in the semiconductor industry predict that DRAM supply restrictions are expected to last for about two years, which will drive SK Hynix's performance to continue to grow.
The report emphasized that while the profitability of general-purpose DRAM has improved, SK Hynix has also confirmed that it has signed a 2026 sixth-generation high-bandwidth memory (HBM4) supply contract with major customer NVIDIA (NVIDIA), further boosting market expectations for its operating profits in 2026. Although it has been reported that there are concerns that competitors entering the supply chain will lead to a decrease in the unit price of HBM4, SK Hynix has clarified that the supply negotiations were reached at "a level that can maintain profitability."
According to data from financial information company FnGuide, SK Hynix's operating profit expectations for 2026 have been significantly increased by about 36%. The expected value was raised to 68.7301 billion won from 50.246 billion won a month ago. Korean market participants emphasized that the memory semiconductor business model is changing, from mass production and sales in the past to ensuring and supplying shipments through prior contracts. This model increases the visibility of the company's profitability.