Memory Chip Squeeze and Sizzling Earnings Propel VanEck Semiconductor ETF to All-Time High

VanEck Semiconductor UCITS ETF hits record high as high-bandwidth memory shortage boosts holdings like Micron and AMD; assets hit $7.4B, but RSI signals overbought.

A deepening shortage of high-bandwidth memory has turned the VanEck Semiconductor UCITS ETF into a non-stop record breaker. The fund closed Monday at 88.87 euros, a fresh 52-week high, and was reported trading at 89.00 euros during the session — adding roughly 62% since the start of the year and more than doubling over the past twelve months with a 142% gain. The rally has pushed assets under management to $7.4 billion, cementing the fund's status as one of Europe's largest semiconductor ETFs.

The bottleneck is in the memory aisle. High-bandwidth memory (HBM) — the ultra-fast chips that feed data to AI processors in data centers — has become a critical choke point. Supply of both DRAM and NAND is extremely tight, with hyperscalers driving prices for DRAM up roughly 25% since late February. Micron Technology, the fund's third-largest holding at around 9.4% of the portfolio, is the clearest beneficiary. The US company reported revenue of $23.9 billion for its second fiscal quarter, nearly triple the $8.1 billion it booked a year earlier, while adjusted earnings per share came in at $12.20 — beating the consensus estimate by roughly a third. Management has guided for further growth in the current quarter.

AMD, the ETF's top position with a weighting just above the fund's 10% cap, also delivered knockout numbers. Revenue from its data-center business jumped 57% year-on-year in the first quarter, and its second-quarter outlook of around $11.2 billion topped analyst expectations. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (TSMC), the fourth-largest stake at roughly 8.75% of the fund, added to the bullish narrative by doubling its long-term market forecast. The chip foundry now expects the global semiconductor market to reach $1.5 trillion by 2030, roughly double last year's level, with high-performance chips alone accounting for 55% of that volume — a segment in which TSMC dominates.

Geopolitical risk, often a wild card for the industry, has unexpectedly eased. China agreed to drop antitrust, monopoly and anti-dumping investigations against US chip companies as part of a broader trade deal with Washington. The US, in turn, has kept its suspension of higher tariffs on Chinese imports in place until November 2026, and new chip-specific tariffs are off the table until at least mid-2027. That gives the fund's globally dependent holdings a rare stretch of operational calm.

The ETF tracks the MVIS US Listed Semiconductor 10% Capped ESG Index, which limits any single stock to a 10% weight. That built-in safety net ensures that no one name — not even Nvidia or TSMC — dominates the portfolio. At present, AMD, Broadcom and Micron are the largest positions, followed by TSMC. The fund's total expense ratio is 0.35% a year.

Not everyone is celebrating the breakneck pace. The relative strength index has climbed above 70, signaling overbought territory, and the fund's price now sits roughly 35% above its 50-day moving average. Former JPMorgan strategist Marko Kolanovic has warned about the speed of the rally, while investor Michael Burry has been buying put options as a hedge. Yet the structural demand shows no signs of cooling. Analysts expect the supply crunch to persist at least until 2028, as new fabrication plants take years to come online. The next major test for the fund's top holdings will come in July, when AMD and TSMC report quarterly earnings.