SK Hynix slumps ahead of US listing as AI chip rout deepens

SK Hynix, the world's dominant supplier of High Bandwidth Memory (HBM) chips used in Nvidia's AI accelerators, is selling off as its U.S. depositary receipt listing approaches amid a broader AI chip rout. The decline reflects growing investor anxiety that near-term AI infrastructure spending may be peaking, or at least plateauing, pressuring the most richly valued names in the AI supply chain.

SK Hynix sits at the epicenter of AI memory demand — it supplies the majority of HBM3E chips to Nvidia and has been the clearest beneficiary of the data-center capex boom. Any softness in AI chip sentiment hits Hynix disproportionately, both directly and through read-across from Nvidia, Micron, and other HBM players.

The timing of the U.S. listing adds an overhang layer: new listings often create selling pressure as early holders seek liquidity, and a listing into a risk-off tape for semis compounds that dynamic. Micron (MU), which competes in HBM, and the broader SMH ETF are likely moving in sympathy.

The bull case rests on structural HBM undersupply persisting through 2025-2026 and SK Hynix's dominant market share translating into pricing power. The bear case is that this selloff is the market repricing AI capex expectations lower — and as the highest-beta HBM name, Hynix carries the most downside if that narrative takes hold. Watch Nvidia's next forward guidance and Micron's upcoming earnings for confirmation of either direction.