International Perspective · August 16, 2026
① SK Hynix Chairman Chey Warns of 'Worst Memory Shortage in History' by 2027, Weighs JV Fab [详见中文版] — In a CNBC interview on Aug 14, SK Hynix chairman Chey Tae-won warned the memory market could see "the worst shortage in history" in 2027 as AI customers' memory demand has nearly doubled. He said SK Hynix plans to double memory capacity within five years, with the SK Group already committed to a $720B decade-long AI-memory investment, and is considering building new fabs via joint ventures to mitigate capex and overcapacity risk. (CNBC/Reuters)
② Temasek Reportedly Plans Direct Investment in Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix [详见中文版] — Singapore's sovereign wealth fund Temasek is reportedly planning to invest directly in Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix through its in-house team rather than external asset managers, and has approached the Korean government to discuss timing, according to Korean media. The news lifted both memory stocks, which surged over 8% intraday on Aug 12 and buoyed the KOSPI. (Bloomberg/财联社)
③ US Memory & Optical Stocks Rally Friday: SanDisk +7.4% (Week +35%), Micron +2.3%, AAOI +15% — On Friday's US session, memory and optical stocks rallied against a slightly lower broad market (Dow -0.20%, S&P -0.17%, Nasdaq -0.28%): SanDisk rose 7.4% and gained over 35% on the week, Seagate +5%, Western Digital +4%, Micron +2.3%; in optical, Applied Optoelectronics (AAOI) +15%, Corning +4%, Lumentum +5%. SanDisk noted enterprise datacenter flash TAM could reach 1.2 zettabytes by 2030. (CNBC)