Samsung, SK Hynix earn more profit than all of listed India Inc

ET BureauLast Updated: May 12, 2026, 05:37:00 AM IST

Synopsis

South Korean chipmakers Samsung and SK Hynix collectively posted record profits of $59.7 billion in the March 2026 quarter, surpassing India Inc's aggregate profit for any previous quarter. This surge is driven by booming AI capital expenditure, with memory chips being central to the technology.

Mumbai: South Korea's two semiconductor firms, Samsung and SK Hynix, together generated more profit in the March 2026 quarter than the aggregate profit of listed Indian companies in any of the quarters so far. This reflects the trickle-down effect of the booming capital expenditure cycle in the artificial intelligence (AI) field for the chip makers as memory chips are core to the AI technology. Samsung and Hynix posted record net profits of $32.2 billion and $27.5 billion, respectively, for the March quarter, amounting to $59.7 billion in combined profit, the data from Bloomberg showed. For India Inc, the cumulative net profit of 3,723 listed companies in the December 2025 quarter was ₹4.5 lakh crore, according to the data from Capitaline or nearly $49 billion. India Inc's March quarter aggregate numbers are awaited.

Agencies

A sharp jump in order flows from AI hyperscalers such as Google, Microsoft and Amazon has resulted in an exponential rise in bottomlines of the chip manufacturers. For instance, SK Hynix had reported net loss in each of the five quarters to December 2023. In the March 2024 quarter, it returned to the black, posting $1.4 billion in net profit. Over the past nine quarters, its profit has surged multifolds, implying a compounded quarterly growth rate of a staggering 44.6%. Samsung's profit grew at a compounded rate of 26% during the period.

The scale of profit reported by the two Korean chip giants is enormous given the fact that their combined March quarter revenue of $127 billion was less than one-fourth of India Inc's quarterly revenue of over $500 billion. It means the Korean chip makers operate at a much higher profit margin - Samsung and Hynix reported operating margins of 42.7% and 72% in the March quarter. India Inc's aggregate quarterly operating margin is usually under 20%.

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