Chip Stocks Are on the Verge of Finally Breaking Their Tech Bubble Era Records

Chip stocks closed in record territory after this year’s gains pushed the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index beyond levels not seen since the peak of the technology bubble more than 17 years ago.

Fueled by rising demand, record profits and an unprecedented number of mergers, the index of 30 semiconductor and related equipment manufacturers is up 48 percent this year and has doubled since the start of 2016. The group gained 1.1 percent on Tuesday, enough to lift it above the March 2000 record, more than two years after the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index topped its bubble-era peak.