U.S. — SK Hynix raised approximately $26.5 billion in its initial public offering (IPO) in the U.S. on Friday. The South Korean semiconductor manufacturer began trading at $149 per share on July 10, 2026.

This IPO represents the largest ever by a foreign company in the U.S., surpassing Alibaba's 2014 IPO which raised $25 billion. SK Hynix stated in a regulatory filing that the funds raised in the U.S. market will be used to build new production facilities in Korea.

Jung In Yun, CEO of Fibonacci Asset Management Global, commented on the offering. "La fuerte demanda de esta oferta sugiere que el interés global por la infraestructura de IA se mantiene intacto, a pesar de la reciente volatilidad," Yun stated.

MS Hwang, a research director at Counterpoint Research specializing in memory semiconductors, discussed the financial impact of the IPO. "Esta crucial salida a bolsa en EE.UU., valorada en US$ 26.500 millones, les proporciona la capacidad financiera para superar a Samsung en tamaño, reducir la brecha de valoración con rivales estadounidenses como Micron, asegurar el talento de élite con una remuneración atractiva e impulsar la moral corporativa," Hwang said. SK Hynix and Samsung each reached valuations of $1 trillion in recent months and together account for approximately 50% of the Seoul Kospi index.

Gareth Leather, a senior economist for Asia at Capital Economics, offered a perspective on potential risks. "El peligro reside en que, si los beneficios no cumplen las expectativas, algo que consideramos probable, los precios de las acciones, especialmente en las empresas tecnológicas, comiencen a caer hacia finales de 2027 y se produzca una desaceleración de la inversión empresarial en Estados Unidos," Leather stated. He added, "Entonces es muy probable que en algún momento veamos cómo este auge de las exportaciones asiáticas se convierte en una crisis."

South Korea's stock exchange became the seventh largest globally in May 2026, surpassing Canada's. Risks identified by Leather include a possible decline in technology stock prices and a slowdown in U.S. business investment by late 2027 if profit expectations are not met.