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Friday 10 April 2026
Samsung and SK Hynix reportedly secure long-term helium contracts with US firms

Industry sources report that the recent supply concerns over semiconductor-grade helium triggered by the US-Iran conflict have eased, as Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix secured long-term contracts ensuring stable access to the critical gas

Friday 10 April 2026
Alibaba's Qwen tops Korea's AI benchmark
Alibaba's Qwen models occupy the top four positions on South Korea's K-AI Leaderboard, overtaking domestic AI models from LG AI Research, SK Telecom, and Naver
Friday 10 April 2026
San'an Optoelectronics executives under further investigation amid family control concerns
China's LED leader San'an Optoelectronics has seen its core executives placed under official investigation, raising market concerns over corporate governance and operational stability. On March 23, 2026, the company announced that its actual controller, Xiucheng Lin, was detained by national supervisory authorities for investigation. Just half a month later, on April 9, San'an Optoelectronics disclosed that vice chairman and general manager Kechuang Lin received a detention notice on April 7 and is also under formal investigation
Friday 10 April 2026
CXMT targets 12-layer HBM production by 2027, closing gap with Korea
China's largest memory maker CXMT is targeting mass production of 12-layer high-bandwidth memory (HBM) by 2027, positioning itself to challenge mainstream specifications long dominated by South Korean suppliers — all within three years of entering the segment
Friday 10 April 2026
China's 6G wait: SoC vendors brace for years of sluggish smartphone demand
Chinese smartphone brands have recently encountered significant headwinds. Government subsidy effects have largely lost their ability to further stimulate sales, while product prices have risen across the board due to increasing costs of components such as memory. Furthermore, Apple has captured most of the growth momentum in the premium segment of the China market, leaving Chinese brands struggling with bottlenecks in innovation and competitiveness for flagship devices
Thursday 9 April 2026
Samsung, SK Hynix pivot to long-term memory deals; Kioxia signals dividend confidence

Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix are reportedly shifting to multi-year memory supply agreements, marking a structural change in how the global memory industry prices, allocates, and plans capacity in the AI era

Thursday 9 April 2026
Samsung P4 fab nears completion, expanding 1c DRAM capacity
Samsung has entered the final phase of equipment investment at its P4 fab in Pyeongtaek, issuing purchase orders (POs) for front-end tools for Phase 2 (Ph2) and Phase 4 (Ph4). According to ZDNet Korea, Samsung placed the orders in March 2026 for the two remaining phases of the four-phase P4 project
Thursday 9 April 2026
CATL invests in China's Zhongheng Electric as AI demand surges

As artificial intelligence (AI) accelerates the buildout of data centers, the race to supply their enormous energy demands is drawing new alliances between China's technology and industrial giants

Thursday 9 April 2026
Alibaba tightens AI strategy with CEO-led committee and executive reshuffle

Alibaba is restructuring its artificial intelligence (AI) leadership, forming a new CEO-led technology committee and streamlining executive responsibilities in a bid to accelerate innovation and stay competitive in China's fast-moving AI race

Thursday 9 April 2026
Samsung profit jumps on memory rally, chips drive over 90% of earnings
Samsung Electronics posted record first-quarter 2026 results, with more than 90% of earnings tied to its memory business, underscoring the scale of the AI-driven memory upcycle
Thursday 9 April 2026
Samsung Foundry launches new 2nm temperature sensor IP to improve chip thermal and area efficiency
Samsung Electronics' foundry division has introduced a new temperature sensor intellectual property (IP) designed to address heat dissipation and area efficiency challenges in advanced 2nm process nodes. Industry experts view this move as Samsung's strategic effort to secure a technological edge over competitors
Thursday 9 April 2026
China's EVE Energy ramps up capacity amid energy storage boom
EVE Energy, one of China's largest battery manufacturers, said on April 7 that it expected strong profit growth in the first quarter of 2026 as demand for energy storage batteries continued to expand
Thursday 9 April 2026
China faces 300,000 semiconductor talent gap, warns SMIC founder

China's semiconductor industry faces a widening talent gap even as global competition intensifies, exposing a structural constraint despite its rapid expansion

Thursday 9 April 2026
CXMT IPO delay eases DRAM supply risks, supports pricing cycle
China's DRAM maker ChangXin Memory Technologies (CXMT) may be delaying its IPO, easing near-term supply concerns, and reinforcing the current memory upcycle. Sources cited by iNews24 said CXMT had targeted a first-half 2026 IPO to fund capacity expansion of 60,000–70,000 wafers annually. With the listing paused, both capital deployment and expansion timelines are likely to be delayed
Thursday 9 April 2026
Helium and tungsten shortages threaten South Korea's semiconductor industry
China's tightening grip on critical mineral exports is sending shockwaves through Asia's semiconductor supply chain. South Korea's chip industry, already on edge over the potential impact of the US-Iran conflict on helium supplies, is now confronting a more immediate threat: a looming shortage of tungsten hexafluoride (WF6). As Beijing's export controls on tungsten shipments to Japan grow increasingly restrictive, Korean chipmakers are finding it harder to secure one of the most essential gases in semiconductor manufacturing