The global memory market is falling into an 'uncontrollable' level of supply and demand imbalance, with prices for older DDR4 RAM rising more than twice as fast as the latest DDR5, according to foreign media reports.
According to the latest data from Taiwanese media outlet Digitimes and investment bank Goldman Sachs, the current spot price of DDR4 is at a maximum of 172% higher than the contract price between manufacturers and companies. This significantly exceeds the figure for DDR5 (76%).
Goldman Sachs analyzed that while the spot price of DDR5 has been showing a steep upward trend since early 2026, the spot price of DDR4 has continued to rise steadily since September 2024, with no signs of slowing down.
Goldman Sachs pointed out that "the current memory market is moving in a structure where spot prices are leading and contract prices are lagging" and that "due to extreme price premiums, downstream customers have virtually lost their bargaining power in contract negotiations." It added, "The gap between spot and contract prices has become excessive, making a significant adjustment of contract prices inevitable."
▶ Source: https://m.kbench.com/?q=node/275650
