Memory chip concept stocks experienced significant volatility. During trading on March 18, A-share memory chip concept stocks collectively surged. Tongyou Technology hit the 20% daily limit up, while Zhongdiangang and Chengxiang Co., Ltd. reached the 10% limit. Netac Technology saw gains exceeding 18% at one point, and BIWIN Storage rose over 10% intraday. Notably, both BIWIN Storage and Netac Technology saw their share prices reach new all-time highs.
On the same day, memory chip concept stocks also recorded substantial gains in South Korean and Japanese markets. Samsung Electronics rose over 5%, and SK Hynix increased by more than 4%. Market analysts indicated the rally in Asia-Pacific memory chip stocks was primarily driven by two key developments. First, a vote by a Samsung Electronics union regarding a potential May strike plan is scheduled to conclude this Wednesday. If approved, a strike at the world's largest memory chip manufacturer could disrupt production in May, potentially exacerbating supply shortages. Second, there were new reports regarding the export progress of NVIDIA's H200 AI chip, with plans indicating the start of large-scale manufacturing.
Reports highlighted concerns over a potential strike at the chip giant. According to Reuters, the leader of Samsung Electronics' largest union stated that as members vote on the May strike plan, the union is threatening to disrupt chip production. A strike at Samsung could worsen global semiconductor supply bottlenecks. Strong demand from AI data center operations has already constrained semiconductor supplies across various industries, from automobiles and computers to smartphones.
Samsung Electronics Union leader Son Woo-moon commented at the start of the voting process last week, "I expect production will be disrupted." Among Samsung's 125,000 employees in South Korea, approximately 90,000 union members are eligible to vote in the poll ending this Wednesday. Son Woo-moon reported that if labor and management fail to reach an agreement, the union plans an 18-day strike starting May 21. He added this could impact about half of the production at Samsung's massive semiconductor campus in Pyeongtaek, south of Seoul.
An anonymous Samsung executive indicated that even a brief production disruption from a "single strike" could damage trust with clients and take years to rebuild. A Samsung spokesperson stated the company continues to engage in dialogue with employees "in good faith." Son Woo-moon attributed growing union membership since last September to employee dissatisfaction with widening pay gaps compared to major competitors, particularly after chipmaker SK Hynix accepted its union's demands for compensation reforms. "The chip industry is booming, but these benefits aren't reaching us. That's why we are fighting," he said.
Son noted that over the past three months, more than 100 union members have left Samsung, South Korea's largest employer, for companies like SK Hynix. SK Hynix approved a plan to raise the bonus cap and allocate 10% of operating profit to a bonus pool. The Samsung union is demanding a 7% base salary increase, elimination of the performance pay cap (currently 50% of annual base salary), and introduction of an operating profit-based bonus pool to replace what it calls outdated and opaque standards.
Samsung Electronics reported record profits in the fourth quarter of 2025, with analysts forecasting this year's annual operating profit could more than triple, exceeding 200 trillion won (approximately $134 billion). In an internal memo to employees earlier this month, Samsung stated it had attempted to reach a 2026 wage agreement by offering an "unprecedented" compensation package. The proposal includes a 6.2% pay raise and special bonuses for memory chip division employees, equivalent to 100% of base salary for every 100 trillion won in annual operating profit achieved. A Samsung spokesperson commented, "As semiconductor business profits fluctuate significantly with market conditions, Samsung distributes operating profit evenly towards future investment, shareholder returns, and employee compensation."
Memory chip concept stocks rallied strongly across the Asia-Pacific market on Wednesday. By noon, Samsung Electronics and Advantest Corporation were up over 5%, while SK Hynix and Kioxia Holdings rose more than 4%. Driven by chip stocks, South Korea's KOSPI index climbed nearly 4%. In the A-share market, memory chip concept stocks also showed significant movement. By the midday close, Tongyou Technology was up by the 20% limit, Zhongdiangang and Chengxiang Co., Ltd. by the 10% limit. Xice Testing gained over 17%, Shenkeda rose more than 15%, and Netac Technology increased over 14%. Dagang Co., Ltd. advanced nearly 10%, while BIWIN Storage and Jiangbolong were up over 8%. Gigadevice Semiconductors and Hangjin Technology Co., Ltd. rose more than 7%, with Fudan Microelectronics Group, Lier Information, and Puram Electronics among others gaining over 6%.
Recently, Samsung Electronics stated that exploding chip demand has led it to seek multi-year contracts with major clients, with agreement terms spanning three to five years. On Wednesday, Samsung Vice Chairman, Co-CEO, and head of the chip business, Jun Young-hyun, said that driven by the global AI wave, the company expects strong chip demand to continue this year. However, he cautioned that rising memory chip prices could impact shipments of computers and mobile devices.
KB Securities analyst Jeff Kim recently noted that Samsung Electronics is entering a period of comprehensive profit growth, forecasting that its entire memory chip supply could be sold out by 2027. Kim stated that surging AI demand coupled with limited industry supply growth is expected to keep the DRAM and NAND markets tight for several years. Major tech companies are now "increasingly considering five-year supplier agreements (through 2030)" to secure supply. KB Securities raised its target price for Samsung Electronics by 33% to 1,120,000 won. Kim also highlighted upward revisions to Samsung's operating profit estimates: a 30% increase to 220 trillion won for 2026, and a 57% increase to 301 trillion won for 2027.
On March 17 local time, SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won, speaking at the NVIDIA GTC conference, stated that due to systemic bottlenecks in chip production, he anticipates the global memory chip shortage will likely persist until 2030, with the supply gap expected to remain above 20%.
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