Memory chipmakers have been among the biggest winners of the artificial intelligence boom. On Monday morning, three of them lost about $108 billion in combined market value.
Micron Technology Inc. (NASDAQ: MU) fell 4.5%, erasing about $52 billion. SK Hynix Inc. (NASDAQ: SKHY) was 4.5% lower in Seoul, losing about $41.5 billion. Sandisk Corp. (NASDAQ: SNDK) dropped 6.6%, or about $15 billion.
The trigger came from China.
ChangXin Memory Technologies said it made progress on a design that fits more memory cells on each chip, the South China Morning Post reported. A stronger rival could ease the tight supply that has lifted memory prices.
Hard-drive makers fell less.
Seagate Technology Holdings PLC (NASDAQ: STX) lost 2.7% and Western Digital Corp. (NASDAQ: WDC) 1.9%. They are down 19% and 16% since Oct. 1, after Toshiba unveiled plans to nearly double hard-drive capacity.
The Roundhill Memory ETF (BATS: DRAM) fell 4.4%.
