AI data-center demand lifts memory prices, spurring CXMT and YMTC expansion

Analyst commentary points to Chinese DRAM pricing nearing global leaders and highlights 3D DRAM progress by 2027, with capacity additions in Hefei, Shanghai and Beijing expected to be fully online in 2028.

Summary

Rising demand from AI data centers is pushing up memory prices and prompting expansion plans at Chinese chipmakers CXMT and YMTC. Analyst jukan said on X that, during a Goldman Sachs call with a Chinese DRAM industry expert, the expert said Chinese suppliers' DRAM prices could match global leaders despite potentially lower yields. The expert also said Chinese DRAM makers may make further progress in 3D DRAM by 2027, while capacity expansions in Hefei, Shanghai and Beijing are expected to be fully operational in 2028. The comments add to earlier reporting that CXMT is building plants in Shanghai and Hefei and may add a third facility, which would lift its monthly wafer capacity above 600,000 when fully operational, with new output from both CXMT and YMTC potentially beginning from 2027.

Terms & Concepts
  • DRAM: Dynamic random-access memory, a widely used semiconductor memory chip for servers, PCs and other devices.
  • 3D DRAM: A memory architecture that stacks or vertically integrates DRAM structures to improve density and potentially performance.
  • wafer capacity: The volume of semiconductor wafers a chipmaker can process over a given period, often used as a measure of manufacturing scale.