Murata is adding MLCC capacity for AI racks and killing the cheap codes that used to fill the same lines. Etnews says it will spend about 80 billion yen, roughly $540 million, over two years through 2027 and lift total output more than 20%. Land for sites through 2028 is already booked. Vice president Masanori Minamide said it is now looking at new plants in Japan and overseas for demand after 2028, on a three-to-five-year view. It has already told customers that parts of nine MLCC series will go end of life. Consumer, industrial and some auto grades are in that list. Last orders are March 2028. Last shipments are March 2029. Samsung Electro-Mechanics is on the same AI-server book. Long-term deals signed since May on silicon capacitors and AI-server MLCCs total 3.32 trillion won. It claims more than 40% share in AI-server MLCCs. An AI rack can take up to 600,000 capacitors, more than ten times a conventional server. Parts have to live at high temperature and voltage around the clock. Few makers can run that spec, which is why the mix pays. Goldman sees the global AI-server MLCC market rising from $1.4 billion last year to $5.8 billion in 2030, about 34% a year. Commodity MLCCs leave the Japanese line. High-cap, high-reliability parts stay. If Murata drops nine series and still adds 20% capacity, does the extra output refill phones or only the 600,000-piece AI rack?

Murray: Is it true that people making under $184,000 pay a 12.4% Social Security tax rate? Dahl: Yes Murray: And the rate for someone making $1,000,000? Dahl: 2.2% Murray: So, a 12.4% tax for people making less than $184,000, but 2.2% for a millionaire or .0002% for billionaires.

MURATA 6981 SEMCO 009150: Passives o/p regionally. Sea change today...perhaps the "news" that SA was to blame for July volatility cleansed our collective psychology. At any rate, positive fundamentals persist, e.g., MS with SEMCO "top pick" note last week.