DRAM contract prices show mild growth in 2H March, says DRAMeXchange

Contract quotes for DRAM chips were showing mild signs of growth in the second half of March, with average DDR 4GB contract prices growing to US$23.5, a 2.17% increase, and average DDR3 2GB prices climbing to US$14, a 1.82% increase, according to DRAMeXchange.

Given the more than 20% growth experienced in the first half of March, along with the fact that DRAM order agreements have already been settled with clients during the first half of the month, the DRAM contract price uptrend is expected continue into in the second half of March regardless of whether the client or sales numbers decrease.

On the supply side, with the demand for the Galaxy S4 being larger than expected, Samsung Electronics has made efforts to accelerate its mobile DRAM production, leading to a widened product gap for PC DRAM chips. Efforts to mass produce mobile DRAM is also spotted from relevant manufacturers within Apple's supply chain, given the company's alleged plans to release more than one smartphone device this year. As a number of Taiwan-based DRAM manufacturers suffered various damages from a magnitude 6.1 earthquake on March 27, the tightened DRAM supply situation is expected to worsen.

DRAMeXchange forecasts that the DRAM price uptrend will continue throughout April and that the upward momentum will strengthen as various PC OEMs maintain DRAM inventory at low levels. A mild price increase can be reasonably expected in the future, and upon the arrival of the peak season, it is not unlikely for the DDR3 4GB module price to approach the US$30 mark.