Reuters reported on Wednesday that SK Hynix Inc. is in exploratory talks with Intel Corp. regarding the manufacturing of memory chips in the United States for the first time. The discussions center on potential collaboration, with one option under consideration being the leasing of part of Intel’s delayed Ohio chipmaking facility. Another possibility involves forming a joint venture with Intel and major cloud companies to secure memory supplies. However, SK Hynix stated that it is reviewing several options, including additional production bases, and that no specific decision has been made. The company is also considering alternatives beyond an Intel partnership.
The article notes that any U.S. production involving sensitive technologies such as DRAM or high-bandwidth memory (HBM) could face scrutiny from Seoul. The talks highlight the strategic importance of memory chips amid AI data-center demand driving a supply squeeze. The Roundhill Memory ETF (BATS: DRAM) has emerged as a primary vehicle for this theme. Launched in April, it had attracted more than $21 billion in net inflows by July, with ETFDb showing launch-to-date inflows at $24.8 billion. The fund's portfolio is heavily exposed to the companies central to the memory cycle, with SK Hynix accounting for 16.75%, Samsung Electronics for 19.44%, and Micron Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ: MU) for 14.93%. Since its launch, the DRAM ETF has gained approximately 108%.
Investors have also utilized the iShares MSCI South Korea ETF (NYSE: EWY) to access the memory trade. Samsung and SK Hynix together account for more than 40% of the portfolio. The fund attracted almost $9 billion in 2026 net inflows, according to ETFDb, and has gained 81.3% year-to-date. The ETF industry has also introduced leveraged products, such as ProShares Ultra SK Hynix (NYSE: SKHU) and Direxion Daily SK Hynix Bull 2X (NYSE: SKHL), which offer 2x daily exposure to the company’s U.S.-listed ADR.
