Nikkei analysis: net profit at 190 Chinese chipmakers jumps 620% in H1 2026

Combined net profit at roughly 190 chipmakers listed in mainland China rose 620% year on year in the first half of 2026, according to an analysis Nikkei Asia published on September 24. The surge was driven by the artificial intelligence boom and China's national campaign for semiconductor self-sufficiency, the report says.

What the numbers show

Nikkei's Shanghai correspondent Tomoko Wakasugi writes that earnings at Chinese chipmakers grew by more than 600% in the first half of the year, as demand for AI computing pushed memory prices higher and domestic fabs absorbed business that foreign suppliers can no longer serve.

Figures from the research firm TrendForce point to a similar picture: 186 semiconductor companies listed on China's A-share market reported combined net profit attributable to shareholders of 160.51 billion yuan, up 607.2% from a year earlier. Memory-related businesses delivered the largest share of the increase.

CXMT and SMIC lead the gains

The memory maker CXMT ranked first both by revenue and by profit. It booked first-half revenue of 150.31 billion yuan, up 873.64% year on year, and net profit attributable to shareholders of 77.61 billion yuan, ahead of the memory module maker Longsys at 10.58 billion yuan. Reuters reported that CXMT expects the global DRAM shortage to persist through the second half of 2026.

The country's largest chip foundry, SMIC, ranked third by revenue with 38.64 billion yuan, up 19.4%, on strong demand for AI-related chips. In its interim report, SMIC said first-half revenue reached $5.51 billion and profit attributable to owners was $676.6 million.

The bonanza reaches chip equipment

Nikkei notes that the gains have spilled over to China's chip tool makers: Naura Technology Group and Advanced Micro-Fabrication Equipment, or AMEC, both posted sharply higher results, with AMEC's net profit quadrupling in the first half.

CXMT is pressing ahead on technology as well. On September 20 the company said its fifth-generation DRAM platform, G5, had entered mass production, lifting gross die output per wafer by at least 50% over the previous generation. It has also shipped samples of its LPDDR6 memory chips to customers.

Still, CXMT has flagged risks from escalating trade tensions, warning that further export restrictions could destabilize its supply chain. For now, the AI buildout and Beijing's localization push keep lifting profits across the industry.