DDR tags stabilize, SDRAM prices fall
Staff -- Purchasing, 6/17/2004 2:00:00 AM
Spot market prices for 32 megabit x 8 (DDR) chips prices have been on a roller coaster ride for most of the year.
The average spot market price increased from about $4.50 in February to $6.60 in April and fell back to the $5.00 range in late May. Spot market tags fell for several reasons, according to Stephen Buckler, vice president of trade operations for independent distributor Fusion.
He says Infineon and Samsung recently transitioned DDR production to 0.11 micron process technology which fueled the price increase in February when the companies had trouble with the changeover resulting in less supply. However, the companies have apparently worked out the kinks in the process and there is more supply. At the same time Hynix moved large amounts of DDR DRAM into the market, says Buckler. He says buyers can expect "a clear market dichotomy" to develop between tier-one brands and tier-two brands. "Tier-one brands fetch a 10% premium purely as a function of demand and manufacturers resolving their processes," says Buckler. "We expect to see prices for tier-two brands to fall below $5.00 and tier-one to fall to the low $5.00 range.
Synchronous DRAM continues to be overshadowed by the volatile DDR market and prices have begun to ease as OEMs sell off excess inventories into the open market
For example 4X16 PC133 products are selling for $3.50, but will likely drop to the low $3.00 range; 8X16 products were selling in the $4.20-$4.35 range, but will drop to $4.10-$4.30 range.
The decline in SDRAM tags could indicate that the telecom and networking markets are losing momentum, says Buckler. Those market segments are the largest users of SDRAM.
Buyers should keep a close eye on the rollout of DDRII. Reason: It could create supply headaches. If DDRII is accepted quickly there may not be enough supply of the chips and the chipsets that support it. If DRAM manufacturers devote more capacity to DDRII and the transition to the technology doesn't occur as quickly as planned, it could result in shortages of DDRII chips.
While prices for DRAM have been volatile, tags for 32 megabit flash parts have increased. Example: The average price for an AMD 32 Mb device was about $5.30 in February and now costs roughly $6.00, although the spot market price had been as high as $8.00 in May.
Spot market prices
| Source: Fusion |
|||||
| 32meg Nor flash | Feb | March | April | May | |
| AMD | $5.30 | $8.00 | $6.00 | $6.00 | |
| Macronix | $3.80 | $3.80 | $4.50 | $3.80 | |
| St | $4.60 | $5.30 | $5.30 | $4.60 | |
| 32X8 DDR333 | Feb | March | April | May | |
| $4.50 | $5.40 | $6.50 | $5.00 | ||
| 256meg DDR333 | Feb | March | April | May | |
| desktop | $36.50 | $46.00 | $58.00 | $42.50 | |
| 512meg DDR333 | Feb | March | April | May | |
| desktop | $77.50 | $89.00 | $108.00 | $97.50 | |
| 256meg DDR3332 | Feb | March | April | May | |
| notebook | $36.50 | $42.50 | $56.00 | $57.50 | |
DRAM prices to increase
05/07/2009DDR2 DRAM prices increase on spot market
07/08/2009NAND flash spot prices fall
11/18/2009DRAM spot-market prices increase
02/03/2009
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