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Weekly Market Review: Week 17 (April Week 4)

SK Hynix 72% OpMargin · Intel +2,800% Surprise — Korea-US Semis Hit Record Highs Together

HHaelangdal·Founder AnalystApril 26, 202615 min readWeekly Review
Bottom Line

Week 17 (Apr 19-25) was a week where stock and sector fundamentals — not macro — drove the market.

Key Summary

Week 17 (Apr 19-25) was a week where stock and sector fundamentals — not macro — drove the market. SK Hynix logged a 72% operating margin (surpassing both TSMC 58% and NVIDIA 65%), confirming K-semiconductor hegemony; KOSPI broke 6,500 and KOSDAQ broke 1,200 (the first time since the 2000 dot-com era, 26 years); Intel posted a +2,800% EPS surprise to seal its turnaround; and Nvidia retook the $5 trillion market cap. The Trump-mediated indefinite extension of the US-Iran ceasefire and VIX breaking below 19 provided a stable backdrop, but were not the price-determining variables this week.

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Reading depth
  1. 01SK Hynix 72% OpMargin — Surpassing TSMC and NVIDIASK Hynix's Q1 2026 operating margin of 72%, beating both TSMC and NVIDIA, is the most impressive memory quarter ever. It is pricing power from AI's structural memory demand.Jump to section
  2. 02KOSPI 6,500 + KOSDAQ 1,200 First Breaks — 1.95T Foreign Selling Marks an InflectionRight after KOSPI 6,500 and KOSDAQ 1,200 broke together, 1.95T won of foreign selling revealed an inflection. The record run stalled on profit-taking.Jump to section
  3. 03Intel +2,800% Surprise — Decisive TurnaroundIntel's Q1 delivered EPS of $0.29 versus a $0.01 consensus, a +2,800% surprise. The 41% gross margin is likely the start of structural normalization, not a one-off.Jump to section
  4. 04Nvidia Retakes $5T + PHLX Semi 16-Day Streak Longest Since 1994Nvidia retook a $5T cap as the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index rose 16 straight days, its longest since 1994. The surge in tier-two names like Credo and Astera led it.Jump to section
  5. 05Macro Side Note — Stable Backdrop, Not the DriverMacro was a stable backdrop, not the price driver. The market shifted from macro-volatility dominance to a phase where earnings momentum sets prices.Jump to section
  6. 06Next Week Outlook — Big Tech Earnings WeekNext week is Big Tech earnings week, with pricing power passing from Intel/Nvidia to Big Tech cloud and AI. The Azure-AWS growth gap and AI capex durability are the watch points.Jump to section

Key Takeaways

This is NewMoneyMoves' weekly market review as of April 26, 2026. Week 17 (Apr 19-25) was a stable macro + explosive stock/sector fundamentals combination — a week of simultaneous Korea-US semiconductor record highs.

Key weekly events:

DateEventMarket Reaction
4/22 (Tue)Trump announces indefinite extension of US-Iran ceasefire + KOSPI first breaks 6,400KOSPI 6,417.93 (+0.46%), S&P 7,117.81 (+0.76%), VIX 19.18
4/23 (Wed)SK Hynix posts record 72% operating margin, KOSPI breaks 6,500 intradayKOSPI intraday 6,557.76 → close 6,475.81 (+0.90%, third consecutive record), PHLX Semi extends streak to 16 days
4/23 (Wed)IBM, ServiceNow earnings disappointS&P 7,108.40 (-0.41%), Nasdaq 24,438.50 (-0.89%) brief pullback
4/24 (Thu)Intel Q1 EPS +2,800% surprise + Nvidia retakes $5T market capS&P 7,165.08 (+0.80%), Nasdaq 24,836.60 (+1.63%) fresh records, KOSDAQ breaks 1,200 (first time since 2000), Intel +15% after-hours
4/24 (Thu)KOSPI sees 1.95 trillion KRW foreign net sellingKOSPI 6,475.63 flat (-0.18 pts), VIX 18.84 (-0.95%, breaks below 19)
Date
4/22 (Tue)
Event
Trump announces indefinite extension of US-Iran ceasefire + KOSPI first breaks 6,400
Market Reaction
KOSPI 6,417.93 (+0.46%), S&P 7,117.81 (+0.76%), VIX 19.18
Date
4/23 (Wed)
Event
SK Hynix posts record 72% operating margin, KOSPI breaks 6,500 intraday
Market Reaction
KOSPI intraday 6,557.76 → close 6,475.81 (+0.90%, third consecutive record), PHLX Semi extends streak to 16 days
Date
4/23 (Wed)
Event
IBM, ServiceNow earnings disappoint
Market Reaction
S&P 7,108.40 (-0.41%), Nasdaq 24,438.50 (-0.89%) brief pullback
Date
4/24 (Thu)
Event
Intel Q1 EPS +2,800% surprise + Nvidia retakes $5T market cap
Market Reaction
S&P 7,165.08 (+0.80%), Nasdaq 24,836.60 (+1.63%) fresh records, KOSDAQ breaks 1,200 (first time since 2000), Intel +15% after-hours
Date
4/24 (Thu)
Event
KOSPI sees 1.95 trillion KRW foreign net selling
Market Reaction
KOSPI 6,475.63 flat (-0.18 pts), VIX 18.84 (-0.95%, breaks below 19)

Three key messages:

  1. 1.SK Hynix's 72% operating margin is unprecedented in memory industry history. It surpasses both TSMC (58.1%) and NVIDIA (65%) simultaneously, and combined with the "essentially sold out for all of 2026" comment, the HBM super-cycle has entered confirmation phase on both pricing and volume.
  2. 2.Intel's +2,800% surprise is a narrative shift, not just a beat. The Street's $0.01 EPS consensus was crushed by $0.29 actual, breaking the "still in loss territory" frame in a single quarter. The 41% gross margin (650bp above guidance) and Q2 guidance well above consensus are structural recovery signals, not one-off effects.
  3. 3.KOSDAQ breaking 1,200 is a 26-year event. It's the first close above 1,200 since the 2000 dot-com peak, and it occurred simultaneously with 1.95 trillion KRW of foreign KOSPI selling — a signal of large-cap profit-taking + small/mid-cap momentum divergence.
Week 17 timeline

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This report is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any financial instrument. Investment decisions should be made based on your own judgment and responsibility. The analysis and opinions contained herein are based on information available at the time of writing and are subject to change.

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