Beijing’s Micron Probe Spurs $12 Billion Rally in China Chip Stocks

(Bloomberg) — Chinese chip-related stocks advanced amid optimism that they will benefit from the nation’s growing self-reliance push after Beijing launched a probe into Micron Technology Inc.

Most Read from Bloomberg

The more than 50 members of the E Fund CSI Chip Industry ETF collectively added more than $14 billion in market value Monday, with Ingenic Semiconductor Co. jumping as much as 19% in Shenzhen while Advanced Micro-Fabrication Equipment Inc. surged 13% in Shanghai. US-blacklisted Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation roses as much as 6.9% in mainland trading.

The Micron probe is seen opening a new front in Bejing’s chip war with the US, which has been moving to prevent China from accessing advanced technology. Investors are betting local Chinese firms may benefit, with the nation’s memory-chip business considered relatively advanced and experienced, unlike the domestic logic subsector.

The Chinese government said in a statement Friday that it’s conducting a review of Micron to ensure the integrity of its information infrastructure supply chain, prevent network security risks and maintain national security. Shares of Micron, which counts on mainland China for about 11% of its sales, fell 4.4% in New York.

While Chinese chip stocks climbed Monday, peers elsewhere in Asia fell on the news. Among South Korean memory makers, SK Hynix Inc. dropped as much as 2.3% while Samsung Electronics Co. slipped 1.6%.

Analysts including Citic Securities Co.’s Xu Tao said Micron’s Chinese clients are likely to transfer orders to local suppliers. Some remain cautious, however, that the share gains in China’s chip sector may not be sustained in the long run.

“There’s no clarity on whether Micron’s products will actually be banned, and the core factor behind the sector moves remains the recovery of electronics demand, and that still remains to be seen,” said Niu Chunbao, a fund manager at Shanghai Wanji Asset Management Co.

–With assistance from Edwin Chan.

(Adds move in SMIC shares)