Sudden collective surge! Chip rumors completely detonate! Nvidia also has major news!

Storage chip concept stocks surge significantly!

Today (March 18), during trading, A-share storage chip concept stocks collectively rose, with Tongyou Technology hitting a 20% daily limit, China Electronics Port and Chengbang Shares hitting 10% daily limits, Langke Technology once surged over 18%, and Bawei Storage rose over 10%. Among them, Bawei Storage and Langke Technology both hit record highs.

Meanwhile, in South Korea and Japan’s securities markets, storage chip concept stocks also surged collectively, with Samsung Electronics up over 5% and SK Hynix up over 4%.

Market analysts pointed out that the rise in Asia-Pacific storage chip stocks is mainly related to two pieces of news: First, the vote on Samsung Electronics’ union strike plan for May will end this Wednesday. If the strike plan is approved, chip production will be halted in May, potentially worsening storage chip shortages; second, there are new developments in Nvidia’s H200 AI chip export plans, which are set to begin large-scale manufacturing.

Rumors of a strike at chip giants flood the headlines

According to Reuters, the leader of Samsung Electronics’ largest union in Korea said that as union members vote on the strike plan for May, the union threatens to disrupt chip production.

A strike at Samsung Electronics could exacerbate global semiconductor supply bottlenecks. Currently, strong demand from AI data centers has already limited semiconductor supplies across industries from automotive and computers to smartphones.

Samsung Electronics union leader Son Yu-kwan said last week at the start of voting, “I expect production to be disrupted.” Of Samsung’s 125,000 employees in Korea, about 90,000 union members are eligible to vote in the ballot ending this Wednesday.

Reports indicate that Son Yu-kwan said if negotiations fail, they plan to strike for 18 days starting May 21. He added this could impact about half of Samsung’s production at the large semiconductor campus in Pyeongtaek, south of Seoul. An anonymous Samsung executive said even a single strike causing production interruption could damage customer trust and take years to recover. A Samsung spokesperson stated the company will continue to engage in sincere dialogue with employees.

Son Yu-kwan said that Samsung employees are increasingly dissatisfied with the growing pay gap with major competitors, leading to a surge in union membership last September, after SK Hynix accepted union demands for wage reforms. He said, “The chip industry is booming, but these benefits haven’t reached us. That’s why we’re fighting.”

He added that over the past three months, more than 100 union members have left Samsung to work at SK Hynix and other companies. SK Hynix has approved a plan to raise bonus caps and allocate 10% of operating profit to a bonus pool.

Samsung’s union demands include a 7% increase in base salary, removal of the performance bonus cap (currently 50% of annual base salary), and the introduction of a profit-based bonus pool to replace what the union calls outdated and opaque standards. Samsung Electronics reported record profits in Q4 2025, and analysts expect annual operating profit to increase more than threefold this year, exceeding 200 trillion won (about $134 billion).

In an internal memo earlier this month, Samsung Electronics said it has attempted to reach a 2026 salary agreement by proposing an “unprecedented” compensation plan. The proposal includes a 6.2% salary increase and special bonuses for storage chip department employees, equivalent to 100% of their base salary for every 100 trillion won in annual operating profit. A Samsung spokesperson said, “Due to market fluctuations in semiconductor profits, Samsung will distribute operating profits evenly among future investments, shareholder returns, and employee compensation.”

Storage chip concept stocks rally across the board

On Wednesday, in Asia-Pacific markets, storage chip concept stocks strengthened across the board. By noon, Samsung Electronics and Aiden Testing rose over 5%, SK Hynix and Kioxia increased over 4%. Driven by chip stocks, South Korea’s composite index rose nearly 4%.

During trading, A-share storage chip concept stocks also saw significant movements. By midday, Tongyou Technology hit a 20% daily limit, China Electronics Port and Chengbang Shares hit 10% daily limits, Xicet Testing surged over 17%, Shenkeda rose over 15%, Langke Technology increased over 14%, Dagang Shares nearly 10%, Bawei Storage and Jiangbolong up over 8%, Guoke Micro and Hangjin Technology up over 7%, Fudan Microelectronics, Liyuan Information, and Puran Shares up over 6%.

Recently, Samsung Electronics announced that chip demand is exploding and is seeking multi-year contracts with major clients, with contract durations of three to five years.

On Wednesday, Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman, Co-CEO, and Head of Chip Business Jun Young-hyun said that driven by the global AI wave, the company expects chip demand to remain strong this year, but rising memory chip prices may impact shipments of computers and mobile devices.

KB Securities analyst Jeff Kim recently stated that Samsung Electronics is entering a period of comprehensive profit growth, with expectations that its entire memory chip supply could be sold out by 2027.

Kim noted that surging demand from AI and limited industry supply growth are expected to keep DRAM and NAND markets tight in the coming years. Major tech companies are increasingly considering signing five-year (up to 2030) supply agreements to secure supply. KB Securities raised Samsung’s target stock price by 33% to 320,000 won. Kim also said that Samsung’s operating profit forecast for 2026 has been raised by 30% to 220 trillion won, and for 2027 by 57% to 301 trillion won.

On March 17, South Korea’s SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won stated at Nvidia’s GTC conference that due to systemic bottlenecks in chip production, he expects the global memory chip shortage to likely persist until 2030, with a supply gap expected to remain above 20%.