China's YMTC Listing Nears, How Much Will It Shake the Global Memory Market?

News has emerged that moves by Chinese chip companies are becoming increasingly significant. Changxin Memory (CXMT), a DRAM maker, recently completed a record-breaking IPO. Now, NAND flash maker Yangtze Memory (YMTC) has entered the final stages of its listing process.

Companies typically buy a set amount daily based on the previous day's closing price. Such buybacks can be read as a positive signal that shareholder returns of this scale will continue, but the effect on share price is limited. Effective price defense requires backing from the strength of the core chip business.

With CXMT listed at a valuation of roughly 700 trillion won, YMTC's listing could reach an estimated 400 to 500 trillion won, considering the market capitalizations of Sandisk and Kioxia. When a company of this scale enters the market, some capital will naturally flow out of the domestic stock market. Concerns over capital dispersion could grow further alongside listing moves by global AI companies such as Anthropic and OpenAI, and the share buybacks by Samsung Electronics and SK hynix could act as a buffer against this outflow.

The NAND flash market, where YMTC is focused, has a relatively small technology gap compared with the DRAM market. Because of this, YMTC can easily penetrate the B2C and Chinese domestic markets. If YMTC expands its share in this market, domestic companies could lose share in China, and this concern is currently the biggest factor. In particular, YMTC's share is likely to grow centered on the Chinese domestic market.

As the AI data center market grows, HBM (High Bandwidth Memory) alone is proving insufficient, and high-end memory with a different role is becoming necessary. In particular, HBF (High Bandwidth Flash), which is attached to GPUs when large capacity matters more than speed, can expand capacity to several hundred gigabytes. However, memory for AI data centers requires both high performance and high reliability, and it is very difficult for Chinese companies to enter core supply chains such as those serving Nvidia. Even if the technology could be partially covered, strong resistance to using Chinese components in strategic assets on national security and political grounds means it remains uncertain whether Nvidia would choose Chinese products when using HBF.

While the first half was a semiconductor-led rally, the second half is expected to bring a market where index defense is possible. Share buybacks by Samsung Electronics and SK hynix are strengthening support for the lower bound of share prices. Investors who already hold sufficient semiconductor stocks do not need to buy more, and those whose semiconductor weighting is already high would be well advised to look for other investments.

This is the first such result in nine years since the Washington exhibition, and it is significant in that the K9 entered ahead of major competitors such as Germany's Rheinmetall. A contract for six test K9 howitzers worth 140 billion won has been signed, which again confirms that the K9 already holds the top global position. Passing testing in the U.S. market will be an important stepping stone for further market expansion for the K9.

It also offers performance similar to the K2 tank while remaining highly competitive on price. The fact that it can share platforms with other weapon systems such as the Cheongung also raises the K9's efficiency and scalability.

Hanwha Aerospace is building an integrated land, sea, and air value chain that creates synergies across its various defense businesses. LIG Nex1 is growing in importance in electronic warfare and air defense systems, which raises the likelihood of future orders. For these stocks, it is preferable to approach them based on medium- to long-term order potential and growth prospects rather than short-term surges.