[SK Hynix Reports Record Third-Quarter Operating Profit, Plans to Return Approximately 100 Trillion Won to Shareholders; Shares Rise Over 9%] BlockBeats reports that on October 28th, SK Hynix reported a record third-quarter operating profit of 83.3 trillion won, exceeding the market expectation of 76.7 trillion won compiled by LSEG and approximately 7.3 times the 11.4 trillion won in the same period last year. Quarterly revenue increased by 328% year-on-year to 104.6 trillion won, with continued demand for AI infrastructure driving up memory chip prices. The company plans to implement a shareholder return program totaling approximately 100 trillion won (approximately US$75.4 billion) by 2026. According to the company announcement, this includes at least 30 trillion won in cash dividends and at least 60 trillion won in share buybacks and cancellations, the latter including the 40 trillion won buyback announced in August. The company stated that the 40 trillion won share buyback was completed last week, and the related shares will be cancelled soon. Regarding supply and demand, SK Hynix reiterated that it expects the demand for memory chips to exceed supply to continue until 2030. To improve medium- to long-term demand visibility, the company has signed long-term supply agreements with 14 major customers. The currently locked-in supply volume corresponds to more than 50% of total capacity in 2027 and 2028, and the company is actively discussing extending the typically 5-year contract terms with several customers. According to data from the BIT stock platform, SK Hynix's stock price rose 9.05% due to the positive earnings report, while the South Korean KOSPI index rose approximately 6.14% during the same period.