SK Telecom, South Korea’s top mobile carrier, reported a 12.5% decline in net profit compared to the previous year due to the repercussions of a significant data breach. The company’s net income for the first quarter of this year stood at 316.4 billion won, down from 361.6 billion won a year ago. Operating profit also decreased by 5.3% year-on-year to 537.6 billion won, marking the first time it surpassed the 500 billion-won level since the cyberattack in April last year.
Revenue for SK Telecom dropped by 1.4% to 4.39 trillion won, with the company attributing the rebound in operating profit to improved profitability in its artificial intelligence (AI) services. Despite losing around 600,000 subscribers following the cyberattack, SK Telecom managed to increase its mobile subscribers by approximately 210,000 in the first quarter. The company expanded its marketing efforts by enhancing membership benefits and subsidies.
SK Telecom’s AI business witnessed growth, with sales at its AI data centre business surging by 89.3% year-on-year to 131.4 billion won in the January-March period. The mobile carrier announced plans to enhance its business-to-business services by offering a comprehensive AI package that includes infrastructure, models, and services. Additionally, SK Telecom aims to develop AI foundation models and enhance integration with global AI technologies to create synergies between its AI services and core telecommunications business.
South Korean stocks experienced a late-morning slowdown in gains as investors sought profits following a record-breaking rally amid increasing optimism for a resolution to the U.S.-Iran conflict. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) hit a new all-time intraday high of 7,523.84 before shifting to negative territory, ultimately adding 29.34 points, or 0.4%, to reach 7,413.9 by 11:20 a.m. Traders opted to cash in profits after the KOSPI surged 6.5% the previous day, surpassing the 7,000-point mark for the first time and closing at 7,384.56.
