Shares of semiconductor companies advanced broadly during Monday's trading session. SanDisk Corp. (SNDK.US) surged over 6%. Micron Technology (MU.US), Seagate Technology PLC (STX.US), Intel (INTC.US), and SK hynix (SKHY.US) each posted gains exceeding 5%.

Advanced Micro Devices (AMD.US), Western Digital (WDC.US), and Applied Materials (AMAT.US) also saw significant increases, rising more than 4%. Broadcom (AVGO.US) climbed over 3%.

Catalyst for the Rally

The positive sentiment was fueled by comments from Chey Tae-won, Chairman of SK hynix. Speaking at the Jeju Forum hosted by the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry, he projected that demand for AI semiconductors will grow by 60% to 100% year-over-year next year. He also forecasted that overall memory semiconductor demand will increase by 50% to 60%.

Simultaneously, he noted that major manufacturers have almost no concrete plans to expand production capacity next year. This dynamic is expected to widen the existing gap between supply and demand significantly. The chairman stated that the intense competition among global companies for memory supply can only be described as "panic".