The recent increase in the price of DDR4 memory worldwide has become a highly notable news item attracting international attention. Many international authoritative financial and technological media outlets have covered this story.
This phenomenon is not a local event; rather, it is caused by global industrial adjustments and market supply-demand imbalances.
The core reason for the global price increase
The analyses by international media generally focus on the following key points:
Strategic shift in production capacity: The three major memory giants, Samsung, SK Hynix, and Micron, have almost monopolized the global market. In order to seize the lucrative AI market, they have unanimously allocated more wafer production capacity to HBM and DDR5. The production of HBM is more difficult and takes longer, further squeezing the production space of DDR4.
Supply shortage and panic buying: Due to the expectation that prices will continue to rise, downstream PC manufacturers, data centers, and distributors have begun to increase their purchasing efforts and even stockpile goods. This panic buying behavior has exacerbated the supply-demand imbalance in the international market, driving prices to rise at a faster rate.
Structural changes in demand: Although the demand for PCs at the consumer end is mediocre, the server sector (especially AI servers) and some emerging markets still have stable demand for DDR4. With supply reduction, this demand is sufficient to support a significant price increase.
Summary
In summary, the increase in global DDR4 memory prices is a phenomenon that has been widely reported and confirmed by international news. The fundamental driving force behind this is the strategic shift at the top of the semiconductor industry - shifting resources from the "old era" of DDR4 to the "new era" of HBM and DDR5 to meet the new demands brought about by the AI wave.
According to predictions from institutions such as TrendForce, the shortage and price increase of DDR4 may persist until at least 2025 or even 2026. Therefore, for consumers and buyers worldwide, this price increase trend is unlikely to reverse in the short term. Purchasing early will result in better prices.
Links：https://pcpartpicker.com/trends/price/memory/
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