Daily Semiconductor Investment Insight | July 22, 2026

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SK Hynix intends to acquire Intel’s semiconductor campus in Ohio, aiming to kick off front-end production of memory chips within five years. This represents a further expansion of its U.S. manufacturing footprint following its ADR listing.

Updates on NVIDIA’s Vera Rubin platform have emerged: real-world testing by CoreWeave shows a 10x jump in token throughput per watt compared with the prior generation, achieving a step-function improvement in AI inference efficiency.

The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index soared 5.21% on July 21, marking its biggest single-day gain since June 22. The memory segment staged a broad rebound (Sandisk +14%, SK Hynix +13%, Kioxia ADR +17%), alongside optical communication stocks.

TSMC plans to raise foundry pricing for advanced and mature process nodes by up to 10% starting in 2027. Price increases for incremental orders of AI high-performance computing chips may be larger, further entrenching seller pricing power in the foundry market.

Samsung Electronics is deepening its NAND collaboration with NVIDIA. It has begun mass production of 10th-generation V-NAND for NVIDIA with monthly capacity exceeding 100,000 wafers, roughly 60% of which is allocated to V9 products.

In-depth Analysis

Optical Communication & Optical Chips：U.S.-listed optical communication stocks rallied across the board on July 21: Coherent rose over 11%, Lumentum gained more than 9%, Ciena climbed nearly 8%, Marvell Technology advanced over 6%, and Credo increased more than 5%. The rebound was mainly driven by positive news on NVIDIA’s Vera Rubin platform and bargain-hunting orders. On fundamentals, SemiAnalysis previously noted large-scale commercialization of CPO will be delayed to 2028–2029, extending the dividend period for copper cable connectors. No major new industrial developments emerged today; the upturn was primarily sentiment-driven.

Advanced Packaging：ASE Group’s U.S.-listed shares surged over 8% on July 21, continuing positive sentiment stemming from its advanced packaging price hikes (up to over 20% for CoWoS and FoCoS). A roughly 10% supply-demand gap persists for advanced packaging. Domestic capacity expansion projects are ongoing, including JCET’s RMB 7.8 billion packaging plant in Lingang and Ningbo SMT’s RMB 10.3 billion Phase III IC packaging base. There were no fresh updates on capacity expansion or pricing; the packaging segment rebounded in tandem with the broader market.

SiC & Third-Generation Semiconductors：No major developments today. Key trends to track: Dinglong Chemical secured mass orders for SiC substrate polishing slurry (June 25); Bosch launched trial production at its first U.S. SiC plant with a total investment of USD 2 billion (reported July 21); Wolfspeed filed a full-line GaN/SiC patent infringement lawsuit against Navitas Semiconductor (reported July 12). Penetration of automotive-grade SiC continues, yet no groundbreaking new updates emerged recently.

Memory & Computing Chips：Samsung Electronics announced deeper NAND cooperation with NVIDIA on July 21. It has begun mass production of 10th-generation V-NAND (V10) for NVIDIA while expanding V9 capacity and developing the 11th-generation 500-layer V-NAND (V11), with monthly V-NAND output exceeding 100,000 wafers. Real-world testing by CoreWeave on NVIDIA’s Vera Rubin platform delivered a 10-fold increase in token throughput, marking substantial improvements in AI computing efficiency. TrendForce previously projected Q3 DRAM contract prices to rise 13%–18% quarter-on-quarter and NAND prices to gain 10%–15%. Goldman Sachs revised up its forecast, expecting supply shortages to persist through 2028. U.S. memory stocks staged a powerful rebound on July 21: Sandisk +14%, SK Hynix +13%, Western Digital and Micron +12%, Kioxia ADR +17%.

Semiconductor Equipment & Materials：U.S.-listed semiconductor equipment stocks strengthened broadly on July 21: Lam Research rose 6%, Applied Materials and KLA climbed over 5%, and ASML gained 3.2%. On the A-share market, Shanghai Securities News published an article on July 22 stating AI computing demand has fueled widespread positive H1 earnings forecasts across the semiconductor industrial chain, with sustained prosperity in equipment and materials. SK Hynix’s negotiations to acquire Intel’s Ohio campus will generate incremental equipment demand. Notably, Intel concurrently announced plans to cut staff in its data center division, reflecting mounting AI transition pressure on its traditional server chip business.

Policy & Macro Environment：The U.S. Trade Representative hinted new tariff policies will be released soon to replace expiring 10% global import tariffs. No specific details have been disclosed, yet the measures may reshape global semiconductor trade flows. Donald Trump claimed strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities will happen “soon”, with Middle East geopolitical risks continuing to roil market sentiment. UBS trading desk analysis indicates hedge fund selling in semiconductors is nearing an end. Long positions have been reduced by approximately 5% of total market capitalization, among the largest drawdowns on record, and bargain-hunting capital is starting to enter the market.

Daily Investment Tips

1. Monitoring the sustainability of the rebound: Following the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index’s 5.21% single-day surge, attention should be paid to trading volume confirmation and whether the index can break through key resistance levels going forward. UBS believes sell-offs are drawing to an end, while Goldman Sachs previously noted hedge funds have dumped tech stocks at a record pace, pointing to fierce long-short contention. Should the rebound be confirmed, memory and optical communication sectors are likely to lead the rally thanks to higher fundamental certainty backed by supply-demand gaps and price hikes.

2. Dual risks from geopolitics and policies：The upcoming release of U.S. alternative tariff measures, alongside potential further escalation of tensions in the Middle East, means macro uncertainty remains a tail risk for the semiconductor sector. Although the narrative of TSMC’s long-term pricing power via foundry price hikes starting in 2027 is constructive, it may face near-term disruptions from tariff policies.

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