Samsung (005930.KS) profit up 1,810%; shares fall as much as 10%

Samsung Electronics (005930.KS) reported a preliminary second-quarter operating profit of 89.4 trillion won, up about 1,810% from 4.68 trillion won a year earlier, while revenue rose to 171 trillion won from 74.6 trillion won. The earnings print was above the 84.16 trillion won market consensus cited by Korean market reports, yet the stock fell as much as 10% in Seoul trading and closed lower by about 7%.

The figures make this a Tier-1 earnings story: the surprise is numeric, the company is a KOSPI heavyweight, and the equity reaction was large enough to move Korea’s chip complex. CNBC’s feed timestamped the item at 2026-07-07T09:46:36Z, inside the 48-hour window, and framed the reaction around concern that AI-related capital spending and memory demand may already be reflected in the share price.

The headline number was not the only number investors traded. Samsung shares had risen roughly 150% in 2026 before the report, according to MarketWatch coverage, leaving little room for a merely strong preliminary result. Peer pressure appeared quickly: SK Hynix (000660.KS) and memory-linked funds also declined as traders tested whether the AI memory cycle can keep expanding from a record base.

The next formal checkpoint is Samsung’s full quarterly release later in July, where investors will look for divisional margins, HBM shipment commentary, foundry losses, and capex guidance. A 1,810% profit increase is a powerful backward-looking number; the share-price reaction says the market now wants forward data on pricing, supply discipline, and return on AI infrastructure spending.

Not investment advice. Verify all figures with primary sources before acting.