Zero One Daily Intelligence Brief — April 13, 2026

DRAM Shortage Deepens as Nanya Tech Secures $2.5B War Chest from Four Global Partners

Top Market Signals

Nanya Tech locks in multi-year DRAM shortage with record margins

DRAM prices surged over 70% in Q1 and will climb by double-digit percentages again in Q2, with the supply deficit now projected to persist through at least 2027. Nanya Technology's Q1 results underscore the severity: revenue hit NT$49.1 billion (+63.1% QoQ), gross margin soared to 67.9%, and EPS reached a record NT$8.41. CEO Lee Pei-Ing said the company cannot fully satisfy customer demand this year and expects a similar situation next year, with new capacity from its Taishan fab not beginning equipment installation until Q1 2027.

The company's NT$78.7 billion (~$2.5 billion) private placement — bringing SK Hynix subsidiary Solidigm, SanDisk Technologies, Kioxia, and Cisco aboard with a combined 10.19% stake — transforms Nanya from a standalone DRAM maker into a strategic node in the AI memory supply chain. The partnership includes supply agreements spanning DDR5, LPDDR5, DDR4, and RDIMM products for cloud SSD and networking applications, with benefits expected to materialize from Q2.

Lee dismissed concerns about DRAM spot price weakness, noting the spot market's small share and attributing the decline to unwinding of speculative excesses — prices that spiked from a normal $20 to $45-50 still sit at $30-35 after a 30% pullback. He also addressed Google's TurboQuant memory compression algorithm, stating that after discussions with multiple cloud AI executives, the technology increases transmission efficiency without reducing DRAM consumption, potentially yielding a net positive for demand. Customers are increasingly signing long-term contracts, with some offering prepayment — a clear signal of structural tightness.

Linked stocks: 2408 TT, 000660 KS Sources: 鉅亨網 — Q2 DRAM價格將再漲數十個百分點, 中央社 — 南亞科今明年供不應求, 自由時報 — Google新演算法對DRAM需求不減反增, 中央社 — SK海力士等4客戶參與私募

Delta Electronics hits all-time high as AI power infrastructure demand surges

Delta Electronics closed at a record NT$1,740 per share as Wall Street raised its earnings estimates on surging AI data center power demand, with one US broker projecting Nvidia's AI rack power market to grow at a 60% CAGR through 2029. March revenue reached NT$59.8 billion (+37.6% YoY), driving Q1 cumulative revenue to NT$159.4 billion (+34.0% YoY) as data center power products shipped at scale.

The stock's 21.7% weekly gain reflects a structural rerating. UBS upgraded its target price from NT$1,600 to NT$2,000, raising its 2026 EPS forecast to NT$40 and 2027 to NT$59 — implying 54% and 15% annual earnings growth respectively. KGI Securities set an even more aggressive target of NT$2,160. The bull case rests on a fundamental shift in data center power architecture: the industry is migrating from 48V low-voltage systems to 400V and even 800V high-voltage DC designs to reduce current losses and improve efficiency as AI server power density escalates with each Nvidia platform generation.

Analysts noted that even Nvidia's next-generation Rubin Ultra platform, with its 288-die design, maintains a relatively stable architecture that reduces supply chain deferral risk, keeping the demand trajectory intact. The convergence of power delivery and liquid cooling into co-designed infrastructure solutions positions Delta as a critical enabler of the AI buildout cycle.

Linked stocks: 2308 TT, NVDA US Sources: 科技新報 — AI電力架構升級 台達電受惠, 經濟日報 — 台達電收1740元創歷史新高

Global semiconductor equipment sales hit record $135.1B as Taiwan spending doubles

Worldwide semiconductor manufacturing equipment sales reached $135.1 billion in 2025, up 15% year-over-year and marking a new all-time high, with Taiwan's equipment spending surging 90% to $31.5 billion on AI and HPC demand. SEMI's latest data reveals an industry investing at unprecedented scale: test equipment sales jumped 55% as AI devices and HBM required higher performance validation, while assembly and packaging equipment grew 21% on expanding advanced packaging adoption.

The regional breakdown underscores Asia's dominance. China maintained its position as the largest market at $49.3 billion despite a marginal 0.5% decline, as domestic chipmakers continued investing in mature and select advanced nodes. Taiwan's dramatic 90% surge to a record $31.5 billion reflects TSMC and its ecosystem building out capacity for AI and HPC workloads. South Korea grew 26% to $25.8 billion, driven by HBM and DRAM investment. Japan rose 22% to $9.5 billion on domestic advanced process initiatives. Europe contracted 41% to $2.9 billion on weak auto and industrial demand.

The data validates the rally in Taiwan equipment stocks this past week: Scientech (3583 TT) surged 52.3%, I-Chiun Precision (2486 TT) gained 30.2%, and Test Research (3030 TT) rose 25.5% — all semiconductor equipment names riding the wave of unprecedented capital spending.

Linked stocks: 3583 TT, 2486 TT, 3030 TT, LRCX US, AMAT US Sources: 中央社 — SEMI去年半導體設備銷售創高, 科技新報 — 全球半導體製造設備銷售額創高

TSMC enters super earnings week with Wall Street targets climbing past $500

Multiple brokerages raised TSMC price targets ahead of Thursday's Q1 earnings release, with Bank of America setting $500 and BOCI lifting to $515, as the chipmaker prepares to report what analysts expect will be a fourth consecutive record quarterly profit. Q1 revenue already topped NT$1.134 trillion, exceeding the company's own guidance high-end, driven by insatiable AI chip demand.

The focus this week shifts from revenue — which TSMC pre-reported as a 42% YoY surge — to margin sustainability and forward guidance. Some analysts caution that gross margins may have peaked as the company absorbs the costs of massive capacity expansion. TSMC is simultaneously building two new advanced packaging hubs in Taiwan to address the bottleneck constraining AI chip delivery, with advanced packaging profit outlook surging on CoWoS and InFO demand.

With TSMC's earnings kicking off a super earnings week that includes major US tech names, the company's commentary on AI demand visibility for H2 2026 and the trajectory of its US and Japan fab ramp will be closely watched by the entire semiconductor supply chain.

Linked stocks: 2330 TT, TSM US Sources: Google News, AASTOCKS — BOCI lifts TSMC TP to $515

Intel surges 24% as Google partnership and analyst upgrades signal turnaround

Intel shares rallied 23.8% in a single week to $62.38 as Jefferies raised its price target from $45 to $60 and the chipmaker expanded its AI chip partnership with Google, suggesting the turnaround narrative is gaining institutional conviction. The moves come as Intel's foundry strategy begins showing tangible traction, with the company positioning its manufacturing capacity as a credible alternative for AI workloads amid growing supply constraints at TSMC.

The surge lifted Intel's stock above its pre-downturn levels, reflecting a market reassessment of the company's role in the AI supply chain. With the broader semiconductor equipment data showing $135.1 billion in capital spending globally, Intel's own fab investments stand to benefit from the industry's push to diversify manufacturing beyond concentrated Asian supply chains.

Linked stocks: INTC US, GOOG US Sources: Google News, Google News

先聲 First Word — Exclusives from Chinese-Language Sources

Zhi Sheng Q1 profit surges 2.1x as TSMC packaging supply chain fires

PCB and semiconductor equipment maker Zhi Sheng Industrial posted Q1 EPS of NT$3.06, with net profit surging 2.1x YoY to NT$467 million on record revenue of NT$2.26 billion (+72.75% YoY), as TSMC's advanced packaging supply chain drives record order flow. The company invested NT$1.02 billion for a 10.82% stake in Dongjay Technology, forming a G2C+ alliance to build a "diamond chain" equipment platform across Taiwan's southern S-corridor. (April 13) Source: 台積電供應鏈志聖Q1營收及純益創新高

Elite Material posts single-month EPS of NT$5.08 as CCL runs at full capacity

Copper clad laminate leader Elite Material reported March net profit of NT$1.82 billion (+42% YoY), with single-month EPS reaching NT$5.08 and Q1 revenue hitting a record NT$33.1 billion (+52.49% YoY). Products are in full-production, full-sales mode across AI servers, switches, edge computing, LEO satellites, and memory modules. The company plans capacity expansion to 9.45 million sheets by end-2027. (April 13) Source: 台光電自結3月稅後賺18.24億元

Apple reportedly raises foldable iPhone first batch to 11 million units

Apple has adjusted its first-batch production target for its debut foldable iPhone upward to 11 million units, according to Bloomberg reports, directly contradicting earlier rumors of manufacturing delays. The device, tentatively called "iPhone Fold" or "iPhone Ultra," is expected at the September event, with implications for Taiwan's display, hinge, and flexible PCB supply chain. (April 13) Source: 工商時報 — 蘋果摺疊手機首批備貨量上調至1,100萬台