This week, as the second quarter came to a close, the semiconductor takeover of the stock market felt just about complete.
Memory chipmaker Micron joined the trillion-dollar club, after a 730 per cent surge in its stock price in the space of a year. And with the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index rising 90 per cent over the past three months, the momentum in the AI boom swung back to chips.
Is this peak semiconductors? Memory, in particular, is a notoriously cyclical industry. After the Fomo that helped fuel the latest furious rally, the market experienced a predictable bout of nerves last week. But even if chip cycles aren’t forever, it’s hard to call an end to this one quite yet.