On September 28, the United States International Trade Commission (ITC) officially launched a Section 337 investigation into DRAM (Dynamic Random Access Memory) chips and downstream component products, with Micron Technology listed as a key respondent, bringing new trade barrier shocks to the global memory chip industry.

As a core intellectual property trade investigation tool of the US, a valid ruling of infringement in the Section 337 investigation will impose a full import ban on involved products, exerting far-reaching impacts on enterprises’ overseas revenue and global supply chain layout. DRAM chips are core basic components widely used in consumer electronics, servers, AI devices, mobile phones, computers and data centers, covering a huge market scale. The current investigation covers full-category DRAM products and downstream terminal components, with impacts far exceeding ordinary single-product disputes.

The investigation will intensify trade games and supply chain segmentation in the global memory chip industry. In the short term, the overseas export business of involved enterprises will face uncertainties, slowing the import and export rhythm of memory chips. In the long run, it highlights the importance of domestic substitution and independent controllable supply chains, bringing rare development opportunities for domestic memory chip enterprises. Meanwhile, Qualcomm and Apple recently renewed their global patent licensing agreement effective in 2027. The long-term cooperation between the two tech giants will hedge partial uncertainties in the semiconductor industry and stabilize fluctuations in the global tech industrial chain.