Average DRAM prices, including high-bandwidth memory, rose between 50% and 55% in the first quarter of 2026 compared with the fourth quarter of 2025, according to TrendForce estimates, marking one of the sharpest quarterly increases in the history of the memory industry. The price acceleration, driven by insatiable demand for AI-focused memory chips and a…
The Nikkei 225 closed at its all-time high of 58,850 on Friday, a milestone that eclipsed the previous bubble-era peak. On the same day, the 30-year Japanese government bond yield reached levels that Japan’s fixed-income regulatory framework has not encountered since the framework was established. The JGB market’s infrastructure, including the Bank of Japan’s bond…
Japan’s Nikkei 225 closed at 58,850 on Friday, February 27, marking what would prove to be the index’s all-time high before external events intervened. The broader TOPIX also reached record levels, supported by a yen that remained near 158 against the dollar and by corporate earnings expectations that continue to improve. BOJ board member Hajime…
Singapore’s Budget 2026, delivered on February 12, completed a technology policy architecture combining governance frameworks, fiscal incentives, workforce development, and capital market support into the most integrated AI deployment environment in Asia. The 400% tax deduction on qualifying AI expenditures, the National AI Council chaired by the Prime Minister, the Champions of AI enterprise program,…
Two weeks after securing the largest parliamentary majority for any Japanese party since 1955, Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s government is moving to implement the fiscal expansion that defined her election campaign. The 2026 budget, which had been delayed by the snap election, is expected to proceed through the Diet with minimal opposition resistance now that…
South Korea’s KOSPI closed at a fresh record high of 5,969.6 on Tuesday, driven by heavy institutional buying that propelled the benchmark toward the symbolic 6,000 level. Beneath the surface, however, a less sanguine indicator has caught the attention of risk-focused investors. Loan transaction balances, a key metric for monitoring potential short-selling activity, have reached…
Loan transaction balances at Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix have reached record levels of 18.78 trillion won and 15.62 trillion won respectively, making them the highest among all KOSPI-listed stocks. The balances, which represent securities borrowed for potential short-selling activity, have triggered a test of Korea’s recently reformed disclosure framework for short positions. The Financial…
The AI regulatory landscape across Asia in early 2026 presents a paradox. Governments across the region have intensified their efforts to establish governance frameworks for artificial intelligence with unusual speed and seriousness. The approaches they have chosen are diverging so rapidly that compliance costs for companies operating across multiple jurisdictions are rising faster than the…
The National People’s Congress Standing Committee adopted the Law on National Development Planning in late February, establishing for the first time a statutory framework for the Five-Year Plan process that has governed China’s economic strategy since 1953. The law, which will be formally ratified at the full NPC session opening March 5, codifies the relationship…
Samsung’s reported HBM4 pricing of approximately 700 per unit, 20-30% above the previous generation, represents more than a supply-demand premium. It reflects a structural shift in how memory is valued within the AI computing stack. HBM4 is a complex, performance-critical subsystem custom-qualified for specific AI processor platforms, manufactured through a process that fewer than three…
