China’s Yangtze Memory Technologies Co. (YMTC) is rapidly climbing the ranks in the global memory chip market, landing at No. 3 in NAND flash shipments in the second quarter, according to new data from Counterpoint Research released Wednesday.
The company, based in Wuhan, trailed only South Korea’s Samsung Electronics and SK hynix, while surpassing U.S.-based Micron Technology and Japan’s Kioxia in unit shipments, Counterpoint said. YMTC captured a 14% share of the NAND market in the April–June period.
NAND memory chips retain data without power and are a key component in smartphones, solid-state drives, and data-center storage. The segment is a critical revenue driver for Micron, contributing roughly a quarter of its overall sales, while faster but costlier DRAM chips account for about three-quarters of Micron’s revenue.
Counterpoint’s report shows YMTC’s ascent has been steady. It narrowly beat Kioxia in shipments a year ago but slipped behind in subsequent quarters. “YMTC is projected to pull further ahead in 2027 and 2028,” said MS Hwang, research director at Counterpoint. “From that perspective, YMTC achieving third place this quarter carries significant weight in the competitive landscape.”
Hwang noted that a 15% market share is the minimum threshold for a memory maker to fund its own capital expenditures for future growth, suggesting YMTC is approaching that critical scale.
IPO momentum and wider market gains
YMTC’s ascent comes as it prepares for an initial public offering on mainland China’s stock exchanges, following the blockbuster debut last month of CXMT, a Chinese DRAM-focused rival that listed in Shanghai. CXMT held 7% of the global DRAM market in the second quarter, placing it fourth behind Micron, SK hynix, and market leader Samsung, according to a separate Counterpoint report published earlier this month.
The broader memory market is booming. Both DRAM and NAND segments posted record quarterly sales in the first quarter of this year, with DRAM revenue approaching $100 billion and NAND reaching nearly $46 billion, Counterpoint said.
Despite its shipment gains, YMTC still trails Micron and Kioxia in NAND revenue, the firm said. YMTC’s sales remain weighted toward consumer applications rather than the data-center segment, which is projected to consume about half of all NAND supply by the end of 2026.
Industry rivals are also positioning for future demand. SK hynix is resuming investment at a NAND production facility in Dalian, a coastal city in northeastern China, after a four-year pause, according to Korean media reports this week. SK hynix did not immediately respond to a CNBC request for comment.
Source: www.cnbc.com — https://www.cnbc.com/2026/08/13/chinese-firm-tops-micron-kioxia-shipments-nand-memory-chips.html
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