Apple Seeks CXMT DRAM Approval to Ease Memory Costs

Apple has asked the Trump administration for permission to buy DRAM from Chinese manufacturer ChangXin Memory Technologies (CXMT), saying memory prices have forced recent price increases on several MacBook and iPad models.

The company first contacted the Commerce Department more than a month ago and has broadened outreach to other administration officials and Washington allies, seeking assurances that purchases from CXMT would not be blocked in the future.

Apple has said rising memory costs were unsustainable and have contributed to product price hikes that coincided with a roughly $263 billion one-day drop in its market value, its second-largest single-session decline.

CXMT and Yangtze Memory Technologies (YMTC) are listed by the Department of Defense as companies with alleged links to the People’s Liberation Army. The Commerce Department proposed adding CXMT to its Entity List last year; the White House delayed that action while negotiating a trade truce with China. Apple is not currently prohibited from buying from CXMT, but the company seeks longer-term certainty because a future listing would complicate supply contracts.

Demand from artificial intelligence data centers has increased need for high-bandwidth memory, tightening global DRAM supply. Market forecasts cited by analysts expect the supply-demand imbalance to continue through 2027, reflecting growing investment in AI infrastructure.

Ming-Chi Kuo, an analyst at TF International Securities, wrote that “the memory supply-demand gap will keep widening through 2027.” He noted CXMT’s production capacity is limited, citing the company’s IPO prospectus, and added that even if Apple gained access to CXMT, purchases would be unlikely to materially lower costs or close the supply gap. Kuo contrasted Apple’s interest in CXMT with its earlier assessment of YMTC, saying the earlier evaluation focused on NAND cost reduction while CXMT relates to DRAM supply risk.

Citi analysts wrote that official permission could be difficult to obtain given the current political climate, but that Apple’s consideration of CXMT changes investor views of the Chinese firm. “Regardless of whether Apple gets the purchase approval, its consideration of CXMT as a potential supplier shifts market perception of CXMT from a domestic substitution play to a credible global No.4 DRAM maker,” Citi wrote.

Last year, President Donald Trump approved sales of advanced Nvidia H200 chips to China despite opposition from some officials, an example of tradeoffs between national security concerns and technology-sector needs.

Analysts say any clearance could be temporary or conditional and that CXMT’s limited capacity would likely constrain how much it can supply. Apple’s requests to multiple agencies reflect the company’s efforts to secure additional sources of memory amid a market where production remains concentrated in Asia and AI demand is reshaping production priorities.