AI boom; SK Hynix in news as memory chip supplier to Nvidia/OpenAI projects. South Korea memory giant, DRAM/flash maker.
South Korea’s Kospi has surged past 7,000 as AI-driven demand for memory semiconductors lifts the market. Goldman Sachs has raised its 12‑month target to 9,000, citing durable earnings in memory chips and rising valuations.
Samsung Electronics has reached a critical juncture as a union move to scrap a 50% bonus cap and push for 15% of operating profit to bonuses faces a government-backed mediation deadlock. About 45,000-74,000 workers are set to walk out for 18 days, pressuring export-reliant economy and AI chip supply chains amid ongoing talks.
Samsung Electronics has reached a provisional 10-year agreement with its largest labor union to allocate 10.5% of the division’s operating profit to employee bonuses, with caps removed. The deal follows threats of a wide-scale strike and is seen as a major test of how AI-driven profits should be shared among workers in South Korea.
Samsung Electronics’ memory-chip division has reached a profit-sharing agreement with its unions, with 74% of around 62,000 voters backing the deal. The plan allocates 10.5% of operating profits to chip workers as special bonuses, averting a potential strike and underscoring the AI-driven surge in memory-chip profits amid a broader tech rally.
Oil markets are volatile as shipping disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz persist amid ongoing U.S.-Iran tensions. Brent and WTI fluctuate around the mid-90s, while gas and diesel prices rise since the war began; markets await potential reopenings and fresh signals from major powers.
The AI-driven memory-chip rally has continued this week. SK Hynix and Samsung Electronics have joined trillion-dollar valuations while the broader Kospi shows renewed volatility amid global AI market enthusiasm and new IPO chatter.
Anthropic has expanded access to its Mythos AI model for cybersecurity testing, signaling broadening global collaboration across critical sectors. The move follows a confidential IPO filing and builds on Mythos Preview’s ability to identify thousands of software vulnerabilities. Partners span power, water, healthcare, and defense-adjacent industries in multiple countries, including the EU and allied states.
British MPs press Foreign Secretary on the detention of Jagtar Singh Johal in India; UN experts condemn the imprisonment as arbitrary, urging action as India-UK talks unfold.
Chip shares remain under pressure as market volatility continues, with Broadcom earnings weighing on sentiment. The Kospi index has rebounded after a volatile week, led by Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix.
SpaceX’s upcoming Nasdaq listing faces index inclusion hurdles as S&P 500 rules keep it out for now, while investors race into leveraged space ETFs and a rising tide of active funds reshapes the ETF landscape.