HK Stock Market Move | ASMPT (00522) rose more than 6% in the last trading session, storage super cycle driving accelerated growth in the semiconductor industry.

ASMPT (00522) rose more than 6% in the afternoon, rising 6% as of the time of writing, closing at 90.8 Hong Kong dollars, with a turnover of 2.4 billion Hong Kong dollars. Huatai released a research report stating that it is optimistic about the storage super cycle driving the accelerated growth of the semiconductor industry. The bank pointed out that according to WSTS forecasts, the global storage market is expected to grow by 39.4% year-on-year in 2026, exceeding the 27.8% growth in 2025. According to TrendForce forecasts, in 2026, DRAM Bit demand may increase by 26%, while NAND Bit demand may increase by 21% (2025: 22%/15%). HBM4 for use in Rubin series GPUs and eSSD for AI inference are the main growth points in the industry. It is worth noting that in mid-December, there were reports that SK Hynix had ordered a batch of new Thermal Compression Bonding (TCB) machines from ASMPT to support the production of HBM4. SK Hynix plans to order 100 sets of TC bonders for HBM4 again in March 2026 to support the expansion of the Cheongju M15X wafer fab. At that time, ASMPT, Samsung, and Hwachin will engage in more intense competition for orders. However, if Korean companies fail to resolve patent disputes quickly, ASMPT may further expand its market share and even dominate the supply of HBM4 equipment.