01. Memory Chip Market Experiences a Price Surge
On September 17, the memory chip market saw a comprehensive upward trend in prices. International giants such as Micron and SanDisk took the lead, with SanDisk announcing a price increase of over 10% for its products. Micron suspended quotations for some memory chips and may raise prices for channel memory products by 20% to 30%. Domestic memory manufacturer Longsys also confirmed this price hike trend. According to CFM Flash Market, driven by factors such as the expansion of AI server shipments, the release of new mobile phone models, and the supply strategy of memory wafer manufacturers, memory chip prices are expected to rise across the board in the fourth quarter. Longsys has shipped over 80 million self-developed controller chips, and the deployment scale continues to grow rapidly. Its UFS4.1 products equipped with self-developed controllers are currently undergoing integration and verification by several Tier 1 manufacturers.
02. MLCC Industry Enters a Moderate Recovery Cycle
On September 19, according to the Financial News Agency, the market prospects for MLCCs (Multilayer Ceramic Capacitors) are broad due to increased demand from multiple fields such as new energy vehicles, intelligent driving, consumer electronics upgrades, and AI servers. As one of the three major basic passive components in electronic circuits, MLCCs account for about 65% of passive components and have the highest market share in the capacitor field. In recent years, the development of AI servers has brought new growth points to MLCCs. Guoyuan Securities pointed out that the MLCC industry has both growth and cyclical characteristics. Currently, inventories are stable, and the recovery of demand in automotive electronics, AI services, and consumer electronics is driving the industry into a moderate recovery cycle.
03. ST Commitment to No Layoffs and Consideration of Italian Plant Expansion
On September 17, STMicroelectronics announced that it would not lay off workers at its Agrate plant in northern Italy. Previously, the company had raised concerns among unions about the potential loss of about 1,200 jobs due to challenges faced by the global semiconductor industry. Italian Industry Minister Adolfo Urso also clearly stated that mass layoffs at the plant were "unacceptable." STMicroelectronics negotiated with the Italian government and unions and ultimately decided not to lay off workers and launched an industrial reboot plan. The company also confirmed that it may expand the Agrate plant after 2027, depending on market conditions and feasibility studies.
04. Japan Provides $3.6 Billion to Micron for Hiroshima Plant's Advanced Memory Chip Expansion
On September 17, Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry announced that it would provide 536 billion yen (approximately $3.6 billion) in funding to Micron Technology for the development and production of advanced memory chips at its Hiroshima plant. Micron plans to invest 1.5 trillion yen by the end of the 2029 fiscal year, with shipments of high-end DRAM expected to begin in mid-2028, aiming for a monthly production capacity of 40,000 wafers by early 2030. Government support includes a 500 billion yen capital expenditure subsidy and 36 billion yen in research and development funds, focusing on the development of high-bandwidth, energy-efficient DRAM for data center GPUs and autonomous driving systems.
05. Global Cellular IoT Module Shipments Grow by 17%
On September 18, according to Counterpoint Research, global cellular IoT module shipments grew by 17% year-on-year in the second quarter of 2025, marking the sixth consecutive quarter of growth. This growth was mainly driven by utility deployments, automotive applications, and early adoption of 5G RedCap.
China and India are the only markets that have maintained growth for six consecutive quarters. India's growth was primarily driven by smart meters and POS terminals, while China's growth was due to asset tracking and surveillance cameras. Latin America performed strongly, with shipments growing by 32%, mainly due to the deployment of smart meters, the adoption of routers and CPEs, and tracking solutions.
Among suppliers, Quectel maintained its global leadership, followed closely by China Mobile. Fibocom's SimCom and LongSung grew by nearly 50%, ranking third. In the chipset field, Qualcomm maintained its lead in automotive, PC, and router applications, especially in 5G and high-end 4G categories such as Cat 4 and Cat 6.
06. Microsoft Places $20 Billion Order with Nebius, GIGABYTE and ADATA Also Benefit
On September 19, according to foreign media reports, Apple has booked more than half of TSMC's 2-nanometer process capacity for 2026. By pre-booking advanced capacity, Apple ensures its lead in chip technology over its competitors. TSMC will begin mass production of its 2-nanometer process in the second half of 2025 and further expand output in 2026. Apple is TSMC's largest customer, contributing NT$624.3 billion in revenue in 2024, accounting for 22% of total revenue. TSMC's 2-nanometer production bases include the Hsinchu Baoshan and Kaohsiung plants, with the first batch of capacity at the Baoshan plant being fully booked by Apple, while the Kaohsiung plant is planned to support non-Apple customers. TSMC also plans to upgrade its production lines at the Southern Taiwan Science Park to meet strong customer demand.