Samsung loses $10 billion in market cap on reports of Apple’s memory chip order

Samsung today lost almost $10 billion in market value as unverified reports trickled in about Apple giving a major order for memory chips to a rival. Taiwan’s DigiTimes, which has more misses than hits in its reporting, ran an article that Apple had placed a huge order with Japan’s Elpida for mobile DRAM chips, buying almost half of its production capacity. Samsung, which is the world’s largest memory chip manufacturer is also the largest DRAM supplier for Apple.
The report wiped off 6.2 percent of Samsung’s market share or $10 billion, the largest single day fall in four years, Reuters reports. Elpida has been in bankruptcy protection and is in acquisition talks with US-based Micron Technology Corp. If the DigiTimes story holds water, this could be a life saving shot for the chip manufacturer. Currently, the DRAM chip market is dominated by Samsung and SK hynix. Apple could have given the order to Elpida in order to retain its bargaining power with the two big players by keeping the troubled chip maker in business.
Having said that, DigiTimes has a hit and miss record when it comes to stories regarding Apple and its supply chain.