Micron stock nears worst monthly drop in 11 years amid China fears

Micron Technology is having the kind of month that makes portfolio managers reach for the antacids. The chipmaker’s stock has tumbled roughly 22% in July, putting it on track for its worst monthly performance in over a decade. The culprit isn’t slowing demand or a bad earnings report. It’s a company most American investors had barely heard of a few weeks ago: ChangXin Memory Technologies, or CXMT, which just made one of the most jaw-dropping public market debuts in recent memory. The CXMT factor CXMT completed a major IPO on the Shanghai STAR Market, targeting roughly $8.6 to $9.8 billion in proceeds. Shares surged more than 466% on their first day of trading, instantly vaulting CXMT into the hundreds of billions in market capitalization. Micron’s stock had been riding high, reaching all-time highs above $1,200 in June 2026 on the back of booming AI-related memory demand. On July 15 alone, Micron shares fell as much as 8% intraday. Strong fundamentals, weak sentiment Micron reported strong fiscal Q3 2026 results and even raised its guidance, citing record demand for AI-related high-bandwidth memory. The DRAM market, where Micron generates a significant chunk of its revenue, has his...