Semiconductor Manufacturers NAICS 334413

Jan 6, 2026 - Demand From Data Centers Drives Memory Chip Shortage

• The global semiconductor ecosystem is experiencing an unprecedented memory chip shortage as demand from AI data centers continues to outstrip supply, according to IT market intelligence firm IDC. Semiconductor manufacturers serving memory manufacturers are likely to benefit from the demand increase. AI workloads require large amounts of memory, and the shortage is in part driven by a reallocation of manufacturing capacity away from consumer electronics toward high-margin memory solutions to support AI, according to IDC. Major memory makers have shifted production toward memory used in AI data centers, such as high-bandwidth and high-capacity DDR5. This has restricted the supply of general-purpose memory modules used in smartphones, PCs, and other consumer electronics, and driven up prices across the board.
• Trump administration officials said in early November that China will suspend the restrictions on exporting rare earth minerals that it announced in October. China will resume issuing general licenses valid for exports of rare earths, gallium, germanium, antimony, and graphite for the benefit of US end users and their suppliers around the world, according to the Trump administration. China is the world’s largest producer of rare earth minerals that are necessary for the production of a variety of technology products.

• Semiconductor manufacturer TSMC plans to invest “at least” $100 billion in chip manufacturing plants in the US over the next four years as part of an effort to expand the company’s network of semiconductor factories. TSMC previously pledged to spend $65 billion on US-based fabrication plants and has received up to $6.6 billion in grants from the CHIPS Act, a major Biden administration-era law that sought to boost domestic semiconductor production. The US government considers TSMC’s heavy Taiwanese presence a strategic risk because of growing threats from the mainland Chinese government, according to TechCrunch.
• Semiconductor manufacturing industry employment decreased slightly while wages for nonsupervisory employees increased slightly during the first eight months of 2025, according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). Semiconductor manufacturers slightly decreased their prices during the first eight months of 2025, according to the BLS.