RAM Prices On The Rise, Up 8% So Far This Month

Price rises. We all dread them and everyone talks about them. It is funny how no one has really mentioned prices of DRAM falling consistently for the past few years but then as soon as prices go up a bit, BOOM, straight into the news. Not that I am one to talk as I am guilty of doing this right now.

According to the DRAMeXchange in the first two weeks of April DRAM prices jumped by 8%. This comes as DRAM prices have been slowly rising over the past five consecutive months after reaching record lows previous to that. Last year we saw rock bottom DRAM prices as supply totally saturated the market, with demand unable to keep up due to an ailing global PC market. In recent times demand hasn’t picked up that much but supply has been cut dramatically, seeing prices rise back up again with some typical supply/demand economics coming into effect.

The average price of 4GB DDR3 modules now sits at $25.50 or €19.53 – not that far off the record high of $30. Micron’s merger with Elpida has been cited as one of the primary reasons for significantly reduced supply as well as it creating uncertainty about the future of the DRAM market which encouraged PC makers to buy in big stocks to prepare for supply shortages. That combination of reduced supply and panic demand has helped boost DRAM prices which is great news for DRAM companies like Micro and Hynix.

Price rises may seem like a bad thing but given most DRAM companies were struggling to make a profit, some even making heavy losses, I am personally glad to see that their fortunes might be turning in the right direction once again.

On the other hand seeing as prices look set to keep on rising, it could be a good idea to grab your RAM kit upgrade sooner rather than later.

What are your thoughts on rising RAM prices?

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