SK Hynix Locks Up 2027-28 Output Even as Washington Paperwork and a Chip Selloff Cloud the View

SK Hynix has moved early to take supply off the table. Long-term agreements unveiled on 28 October cover more than half of the memory maker's production capacity for 2027 and 2028, spanning 14 customers, the company said — a book of business that stretches well past the current financial year and points to demand still running ahead of what its fabs can turn out.

Management expects the memory shortage to persist through 2030, a forecast that sits behind the contracted volumes rather than alongside them.

A record quarter behind the contracts

The commitments rest on a strong trading base. For the third quarter of 2026, SK Hynix posted revenue of 104.6 trillion won and an operating profit of 83.3 trillion won — the top line described as a record, with the operating result landing at the same 83.3 trillion won figure.

Industry participants see no sign of that order book cracking. According to media reports on Friday, sector representatives said customers had neither cancelled supply contracts with SK Hynix nor trimmed their order volumes.

Two demand signals point the other way

Sentiment around chip stocks has nonetheless turned cautious. Reuters reported on Friday a broad selloff in AI-related equities, with investors worried that the outcome of the US midterm elections could bring tighter rules on building AI data centres — a drag on demand expectations.

Qualcomm added a second note of caution on Wednesday. CNBC reported that the company's smartphone-chip revenue fell 26% in the fourth quarter of its 2026 financial year, a result financial coverage read as a further concern for memory-chip demand amid the sector-wide retreat.

US footprint in flux around 3 December

On the corporate side, SK Hynix is preparing to expand its US headcount and reorganise its operations there around 3 December, according to parent SK Group. The aim is to strengthen ties with key American customers, Nvidia among them, and — as SK Group put it — to deepen collaboration with AI customers from the earliest stages of development. Media reports on Thursday pointed to further executive appointments in the US as part of the same push.

Dalian equipment caught in the licensing queue

Access to American manufacturing technology remains the sticking point for the investment programme. SK Hynix said on Wednesday it is continuing to bring US-made equipment into its Dalian plant under an existing export licence, with talks over the permit for the coming year still under way.

Reuters reported on 3 November that US authorities had not yet approved licences for additional tools to raise output in Dalian. That delay, Reuters said, complicated the reported investment plans of Solidigm in New York: SK Hynix had intended to use higher production in Dalian to help fund the US expansion.

A concrete investment plan for a US fab has not been finalised, the company said on Wednesday.