SK Hynix's U.S.-listed shares climbed further Thursday, extending a volatile but largely upward run since the South Korean memory chipmaker's record-breaking Nasdaq debut two weeks ago, as renewed optimism about artificial intelligence infrastructure spending lifted chip stocks broadly.

SK Hynix's American depositary receipts, trading under the ticker SKHY, stood at $172.70 as of 12:55 p.m. Eastern time, up $7.43, or 4.50%, on the day. The gain builds on a stretch of significant volatility for the newly listed shares, which have swung sharply in both directions since their Nasdaq debut on July 10.

What's driving Thursday's gains

Thursday's rally was fueled largely by Alphabet's latest earnings report, released after Wednesday's market close, in which the Google parent company raised its 2026 capital expenditure forecast to a range of $195 billion to $205 billion, up from its earlier guidance of $180 billion to $190 billion. Alphabet also reported that Google Cloud revenue jumped 82% to $24.8 billion in the second quarter, reinforcing investor confidence in continued heavy spending on AI infrastructure. Alphabet Chief Financial Officer Anat Ashkenazi said demand continues to exceed supply. "The demand still outpaces that investment," Ashkenazi said.

That spending signal rippled through the broader semiconductor sector Thursday. Shares of Micron Technology rose roughly 3% at the start of U.S. trading, while SK Hynix's ADR gained more than double that percentage, reflecting the additional volatility built into the newly listed depositary receipts,........

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