ESMT revenue hits record high as DDR2 and DDR3 prices keep climbing

ESMT’s revenue surge stems not from innovation but from supply-demand imbalances in legacy DDR2/3 markets. As leading players pivot to HBM and LPDDR5X, idled 8-inch fabs create a vacuum that Taiwan, China-based specialists exploit via mature-node IP control. Yet this boom is precarious: any reactivation of old lines by Samsung or Micron could trigger a price collapse. Compounding risk, U.S. export controls on semiconductor equipment indirectly raise compliance costs—certain packaging materials fall under EAR, forcing ESMT to localize its supply chain. Industrial and automotive sectors will sustain demand over the next 12 months, but AIoT migration to LPDDR4+ within 24 months will erase this niche advantage. SK Hynix is already stockpiling DDR3 to deter secondary players from capacity expansion, signaling a covert market war.