China’s ChangXin Memory Technologies (CXMT) completed a major public market debut on the Shanghai STAR Market, raising between $8.6 billion and $9.8 billion in proceeds according to financial reports. The offering saw shares surge more than 466% to over 531% on their first day of trading, pricing the IPO at 8.66 yuan per share and raising 57.92 billion yuan or roughly $8.55 billion. The massive valuation instantly vaulted CXMT into the hundreds of billions in market capitalization, making it mainland China’s most valuable company at approximately $540 billion or 3.68 trillion yuan.
CXMT Makes Blockbuster Shanghai Debut and Rattles Global Memory Stocks
The blockbuster debut catalyzed a sharp sell-off across international memory and storage stocks. Micron Technology shares fell 5% to $871, while SanDisk stock dropped 12% to $1,270, Western Digital fell 7% to $483, and SK Hynix ADRs dropped 6%. The Roundhill Memory ETF also registered a 4% decline, reflecting broad sector anxiety over the emergence of a well-capitalized Chinese entrant backed by state support in an industry historically dominated by an oligopoly. CXMT currently stands as the world’s fourth-largest DRAM maker with an 8% market share, trailing Samsung at 36%, SK Hynix at 29%, and Micron at 24%. Morningstar analysts expect CXMT’s global DRAM share to rise to 10%.
Apple Tests Chinese Memory Chips Amid Global Component Shortages
The public debut and expansion of CXMT coincide with moves by major technology brands to evaluate Chinese semiconductor components. Apple has been testing memory chips from CXMT across product lines including iPhones and MacBooks to mitigate component shortages fueled by the artificial intelligence boom, according to a report. Apple held early talks with CXMT—China’s largest chipmaker by market value—about supplying components with the goal of using them in devices sold in China. Additionally, laptop makers HP and Acer have started using CXMT memory chips in devices sold outside the United States to ease supply constraints.
Apple executives, including CEO Tim Cook, have pitched a broader plan to top administration officials—including President Trump, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent—to source memory chips from Chinese suppliers CXMT and YMTC for products sold worldwide, including the United States. Apple accused Micron of price gouging, noting that its gross profit margins top 80%, and argued that the U.S. chip maker is not investing fast enough to supply consumer devices rather than AI data centers.
Micron Lobbies Washington as Geopolitical Headwinds Face CXMT
Micron has pushed back aggressively against the inclusion of Chinese memory suppliers, lobbying the White House and Congress for more stringent controls on technology sales to Chinese companies. Micron argued that allowing cheaper Chinese memory chips could hollow out America’s chip industry. As an alternative, Micron highlighted that it has committed more than $250 billion toward American chip manufacturing through 2035, including new fabrication plants in Idaho, New York, and Virginia.
Political and regulatory hurdles continue to constrain CXMT’s global reach. CXMT remains subject to U.S. export controls on advanced chipmaking tools and sits on the Pentagon’s list of firms with alleged military ties, while YMTC is restricted on the Commerce Department’s Entity List. Analysts note that CXMT remains at least one generation behind in high-bandwidth memory (HBM) and does not yet pose an immediate threat in the fast-growing AI memory market. Analysts believe Micron remains well-positioned in premium high-bandwidth memory even as new Chinese supply exerts pricing pressure on commodity DRAM used in phones and personal computers.
