SK hynix Inc. said Thursday its third-quarter net profit reached an all-time high, helped by strong global prices of chips.

Net profit came to a record high of 3.05 trillion won (US$2.7 billion), rising sharply from 597 billion won posted a year earlier, the company said.

Operating profit also reached a historic high of 3.7 trillion won in the July-September period, rising sharply from 725 billion won posted in the previous year. Sales increased 91 percent over the cited period to reach 8.1 trillion won.

SK hynix posted new quarterly records in net profit, operating income and revenue.

SK hynix said the shipment of dynamic random-access memory (DRAM) chips advanced 17 percent and average selling prices rose 6 percent on-quarter in the July-September period, on the back of rising demand for server products.

The shipment of NAND flash products also shot up 16 percent over the cited period following the release of new smartphones, although the average sales price edged down 3 percent.

For the fourth quarter, SK hynix said demand for its products is expected to continue to remain firm on strong demand from data centers amid the boom of cloud computing services.

The release of new smartphones will also continue to support its earnings, SK hynix added.

SK hynix said it will kick off the production of 10-nanometer DRAM as planned in the fourth quarter.

"In addition, the company is to deal with the high-density mobile solution and SSD market with its 72-Layer 3D NAND, which will be mass produced in the fourth quarter," the company said.

The company said it will complete the construction of additional facilities in Icheon by December, aimed at meeting the industrywide boom.

SK hynix's profitability may also get a boost from its participation in a global consortium that recently purchased Toshiba's memory business.