The Taiwanese Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) managed to herd government representatives and leading Information and Communication Technology (ICT) industry figures together for an important meeting, according to DigiTimes Asia. The report suggests that the main topic of discussion focused on an anticipated growth of Taiwan's ICT industry—current market trends were analyzed, revealing that the nation absolutely dominates in the AI server segment. The MOEA has (allegedly) determined that Taiwan has shipped 90% of global AI server equipment—DigiTimes claims (based on insider info) that: "American brand vendors are expected to source their AI servers from Taiwanese partners." North American customers could be (presently) 100% reliant on supplies of Taiwanese-produced equipment—a scenario that potentially complicates ongoing international tensions.

The report posits that involved parties have formed plans to seize opportunities within an evergrowing global demand for AI hardware—a 90% market dominance is clearly not enough for some very ambitious industry bosses—although manufacturers will need to jump over several (rising) cost hurdles. Key components for AI servers are reported to be much higher than vanilla server parts—DigiTimes believes that AI processor/accelerator chips are priced close to ten times higher than general purpose server CPUs. Similar price hikes have reportedly affected AI adjacent component supply chains—notably cooling, power supplies and passive parts. Taiwanese manufacturers have spread operations around the world, but industry watchdogs (largely) believe that the best stuff gets produced on home ground—global expansions are underway, perhaps inching closer to better balanced supply conditions.

TrendForce reports that the DRAM contract prices are estimated to increase by approximately 13-18% in 1Q24 with mobile DRAM leading the surge. It appears that due to the unclear demand outlook for the entire year of 2024, manufacturers believe that sustained production cuts are necessary to maintain the supply-demand balance in the memory industry.

PC DRAM: The market is buzzing with unfilled DDR5 orders, while savvy buyers brace for a continued surge in DDR4 prices, keeping procurement engines running. This trend, however, is shadowed by a gradual industry pivot toward DDR5, casting uncertainty over the expansion of DDR4 bit procurement volumes. Despite this, both DDR4 and DDR5 prices have yet to hit the target set by manufacturers, and buyers seem ready to ride the wave of price hikes into 1Q24. This sets the stage for an estimated 10-15% in PC DRAM contract prices, with DDR5 poised to take the lead over DDR4 in this pricing rally.

TrendForce reports indicate a universal price increase for both DRAM and NAND Flash starting in the fourth quarter. DRAM prices, for instance, are projected to see a quarterly surge of about 3-8%. Whether this upward momentum can be sustained will hinge on the suppliers' steadfastness in maintaining production cuts and the degree of resurgence in actual demand, with the general-purpose server market being a critical determinant.

PC DRAM: DDR5 prices, having already surged in the third quarter, are expected to maintain their upward trajectory, fueled by the stocking of new CPU models. This forthcoming price hike cycle for both DDR4 and DDR5 is incentivizing PC OEMs to proceed with purchases. Although manufacturers still have substantial inventory and there's no imminent shortage, Samsung has been nudged to further slash its production. However, facing negative gross margins on DRAM products, most manufacturers are resistant to further price reductions, instead pushing for aggressive increases. This stance sets the stage for an anticipated rise in DDR4 prices by 0-5% and DDR5 prices by around 3-8% in the fourth quarter. Overall, as DDR5 adoption accelerates, an approximate 3-8% quarterly increase is projected for PC DRAM contract prices during this period.

Recent rumors suggested that Intel contemplated a price hike across all of its Core processors. This speculation originated from a forum staff member from PCGH who claimed to have received related information indicating a possible correspondence from Intel to its wholesalers about an impending price rise. In response to these rumors, Intel confirmed to HardwareLuxx that it has no plans to increase processor prices currently. The company stated that the Recommended Customer Price (RCP), which is generally quoted in US dollars for 1,000 unit prices as per their Ark database, will persist unchanged. Intel clarified that it hadn't shared such news with its customers or partners, nor was it considering a price change for its CPU portfolio at the moment.

The speculated price increase was reportedly associated with Intel's ongoing and planned factory constructions and company restructuring, according to PCGH. The need to refinance the 'fabs' was cited as the primary reason. Presently, Intel is streamlining its expenses, shutting down multiple smaller business areas, and investing significantly with state aid. However, it is doubtful that these reasons would be expressed in a wholesaler letter as grounds for price hikes. The PC market is currently sluggish, and though an uplift is predicted for the second half of this year, most segments of the PC market are still witnessing double-digit percentage reductions. In such a scenario, where buyers are becoming increasingly price-sensitive, and the market is trying to rebound, a price rise could be counterproductive.

TrendForce reports that OEMs have continued making concerted efforts to scale back production. However, given that the trajectory of market demand is still unclear, it's expected that the NAND Flash market will continue to be in a state of oversupply in 3Q23. Cautious inventory management by buyers is preventing a stabilization in NAND Flash prices even with an anticipated seasonal surge in demand for 2H23. TrendForce predicts that NAND Flash wafers will be the first to see a price hike in 3Q23 as prices for module products such as SSDs, eMMCs, and UFS will likely continue to fall due to tepid downstream demand. Consequently, the overall ASP of NAND Flash is forecast to continue dropping by about 3~8% in 3Q23, though a possibility exists prices may recover in 4Q23.

Client SSD: Although notebook shipments are expected to gradually recover in 3Q23, reversing an oversupply of SSD will continue to be challenging. Furthermore, a portion of suppliers have implemented aggressive promotions to secure customer orders and hit shipping targets in light of weakened demand and less-than-satisfactory order volumes from major clients, putting pressure on other suppliers. TrendForce estimates that the ASP of client SSDs will fall by 8~13% in the third quarter.

According to the Verge, Microsoft is getting ready to hike up the price of its Xbox Series X console come August, but apparently only in some parts of the world. However, the company is also readying a small price increase in its Game Pass pricing as well, that will take effect globally. The Game Pass pricing increase in the US will be a mere US$1 from US$9.99 to US$10.99 a month, whereas the Game Pass Ultimate will see an increase of US$2, from US$14.99 to US$16.99 a month, with European countries seeing the same kind of increase in cost, but in Euro instead of Dollars. The Verge has a list of other regional price increases for the Game Pass for those interested.

As for the Xbox Series X, Europe, Canada and Australia are said to see a hike in pricing, whereas the US, Japan and some South American nations are apparently avoiding a price hike for now. The new pricing will be £479.99 in the UK, €549.99 in most EU countries, C$649.99 in Canada and AU$799.99 in Australia. The new pricing is said to take effect on the first of August. The Xbox Series S will apparently avoid a price hike for now.

Nintendo of America CEO Doug Bowser granted a rare interview to Associated Press, presumably as part of promotional duties prior to the February 17 opening of its Super Nintendo World theme park at Universal Studios Hollywood. In an article published on March 13, AP News journalist Greg Keller threw in a surprise query about the $70 asking price for Nintendo's upcoming sequel to 2017's The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. Fan backlash to Nintendo of America's price hiking reached fever pitch earlier in 2023, and the company has not been very communicative with reasons for increasing the pricing of certain flagship Switch titles, until now.

Bowser's response was suitably neutral, but plenty can be read into it: "We look at what the game has to offer. I think fans will find this is an incredibly full, deeply immersive experience. The price point reflects the type of experience that fans can expect when it comes to playing this particular game. This isn't a price point that we'll necessarily have on all our titles. It's actually a fairly common pricing model either here or in Europe or other parts of the world, where the pricing may vary depending on the game itself." It is clear that he thinks that Tears of the Kingdom presents good value for money, given the standard of content being offered to the prospective player. It is possible that he is hinting that upcoming remakes of legacy Legend of Zelda games will be offered at sub-$70 prices. The recently released Metroid Prime Remastered debuted digitally at $39.99 on the Nintendo eShop, and physical copies have been sold for less at retailers.

The feared import tariff increase that could've taken place in the US in the new year, has been pushed thanks to the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR). As such, graphics cards won't see a price hike in the new year, alongside a range of other products in 352 different categories, which also includes other types of PCBs and computer hardware. The tariff exclusion is known as Section 301 and was supposed to run its course by the end of this year, but will be extended for another nine months.

As to what will happen after the nine months extension, is anyone's guess at this point in time, as the USTR is having a review of the effectiveness of Section 301. The USTR has already had a first review, where parties that have benefitted from the tariffs have been able to leave feedback, early next year, parties that have been opposed to the tariff will also be able to leave their feedback. After the review, it'll be up to the US government to decide the future of the tariffs imposed against Chinese made products. This could lead to even more expensive computer components in the future in the US, but for now, nothing will change.

According to the latest report from Nikkei Asia, Intel will raise its CPU pricing structure starting this fall. Citing concerns of increased electricity, raw materials, and labor costs, Intel has informed its clients that the company will add additional overhead to its existing pricing structure to make up for that difference. The report indicates that most of its microprocessors and peripheral chip products will be affected. However, the main target of the inflating costs is the company's Core and Xeon processor families. If you are wondering just how much will this price hike be, the current speculations point to anywhere from a 10 to 20 percent increase.

Of course, this information should be taken with a grain of salt. However, it is quite possible to see this price hike in the upcoming fall season, and we have to wait and see if it plays out.

The island of Taiwan is in many ways very much still stuck in an era where the government controls most utilities and where there is little to no competition. For example, the government controls fuel prices, be that for your motor vehicle or for cooking and heating. This also applies to the cost of electricity in most cases and the Ministry of Economic Affairs has announced that the electricity price will increase by up to 15 percent for high usage customers, which translates to the industry. The increase might sound tiny at just over 1.3 cents per kilowatt hour, for a total cost of 10.43 cents per kWh. However, a company like TSMC that uses a lot of electricity, is expected to see an increase in costs of at least US$135 million per year, according to some Taiwanese news sources, while others claim it'll be as much as US$270 million.

TSMC does in all fairness produce some of its own electricity thanks to solar panels on many of its buildings and the company has also invested heavily in renewable energy. In fact, TSMC has bought up almost all available renewable capacity in Taiwan and the company is committed to using 100 percent renewable energy in the long term. Currently a mere 8 percent (based on 2020 estimates) is coming from TSMC's own efforts, but the company should be at somewhere around 12-15 percent overall. Even so, these extra costs are likely to be reflected in future customer pricing. It's the first price hike in four years, but as Taiwan is a manufacturing nation, TSMC is unlikely to be the only company affected, but the price hike is related to global inflation and is targeting high-usage businesses and consumers alike.

Earlier this week, news about TSMC increasing prices in 2023 made its way online and now Samsung Foundry is said to be discussing price hikes with its customers to make up for the increased costs in materials. TSMC already increased its prices by around 20 percent at the end of 2021 and now it looks like Samsung Foundry is set to follow suit with a similar price hike. Depending on the node, the company is said to be looking at increases of between 15 to 20 percent. The somewhat peculiar thing in the case of Samsung Foundry, is that the company is looking at asking for more money on older, legacy nodes, than it will for its cutting edge nodes.

The price increases are said to come into effect sometime in the second half of 2022, so more than six months after TSMC's price hike. The company is still in negotiation with some of its customers, while others have already come to an agreement with Samsung Foundries. The costs to produce chips are said to be increasing by 20 to 30 percent across the board, no matter if we're talking materials needed to produce integrated circuits, or building new factories, according to Bloomberg. Samsung Foundries have also managed to secure long-term orders for the next five years, with a combined value of around eight times that of previous year's revenue, according to its EVP, Kang Moon-soo. The company is hoping to overtake TSMC in the future and invested more than US$36 billion in 2021 alone to expand its foundry business with new fabs and EUV machines. The good news is that Samsung Foundry claims to be back on track when it comes to yield on its 4 nm node and mass production of its 3 nm node is said to start this quarter.

The global inflation rises are no secret and more and more companies are looking to increase prices of their goods, so not entirely unsurprising, reports of TSMC planning price hikes in early 2023 are starting to appear. TSMC has supposedly already contacted its customers to notify them about the upcoming price increase, to give them as much time as possible to make any changes to their plans, if needed. The price increase will vary depending on the node in question, but is reported to be somewhere between five and eight percent according to the Nikkei.

Part of the increase is also related to TSMC's rapid expansion that's going on at the moment, since the company is going to need to invest a lot more capital when it comes to building the advanced fabs that its customers are relying on. TSMC is expected to invest some US$40-44 billion this year alone on fabs and new equipment. This is a fairly small price increase compared to the big increase TSMC implemented in August 2021, where some nodes saw price hikes of up to 20 percent. That said, TSMC isn't alone in increasing their pricing, as UMC and SMIC have also increased their prices several times since last year. Nikkei claims that UMC and SMIC are charging more than TSMC on some nodes. However, in the past, TSMC used to offer discounts to its clients on a quarterly basis once a chip had gone into mass production and everything progressed smoothly, but TSMC discontinued this discount scheme last year. As such, it looks like cheaper chip costs aren't to be expected any time soon.

Intel and AMD will be releasing new CPUs that support DDR5 DRAM solutions for PCs and servers this year. In response, the DRAM industry led by South Korean suppliers is developing solutions to complement the arrival of the new CPUs. In the midst of the gradual shift to DDR5, DRAM suppliers will also scale back the supply of DDR3 solutions, according to TrendForce's latest investigations. With Korean suppliers accelerating their withdrawal from DDR3 production, Taiwanese suppliers yet to kick off mass production using newly installed capacities, and Chinese suppliers falling short of their expected yield rate, the global supply of DDR3 solutions will undergo an impending decline. With respect to the demand side, however, not only has the supply of networking chips been ramping up, but material shortage issues are also gradually easing. As such, buyers are now procuring DDR3 solutions ahead of time, resulting in a tight supply and demand situation in the DDR3 market. TrendForce therefore expects DDR3 DRAM prices to recover from a bearish first quarter and undergo a 0-5% QoQ increase in 2Q22.

The panic buying of chips persisted in 2Q21 owing to factors such as post-pandemic demand, industry-wide shift to 5G telecom technology, geopolitical tensions, and chronic chip shortages, according to TrendForce's latest investigations. Chip demand from ODMs/OEMs remained high, as they were unable to meet shipment targets for various end-products due to the shortage of foundry capacities. In addition, wafers inputted in 1Q21 underwent a price hike and were subsequently outputted in 2Q21. Foundry revenue for the quarter reached US$24.407 billion, representing a 6.2% QoQ increase and yet another record high for the eighth consecutive quarter since 3Q19.

The stay-at-home economy remains robust due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, so the sales of gaming products such as game consoles and the demand for related components are being kept at a decent level, according to TrendForce's latest investigations. However, the values of cryptocurrencies have plummeted in the past two months because of active interventions from many governments, with the graphics DRAM market entering into a bearish turn in 3Q21 as a result. While graphics DRAM prices in the spot market will likely show the most severe fluctuations, contract prices of graphics DRAM are expected to increase by 10-15% QoQ in 3Q21 since DRAM suppliers still prioritize the production of server DRAM over other product categories, and the vast majority of graphics DRAM supply is still cornered by major purchasers.

It should be pointed out that, given the highly volatile nature of the graphics DRAM market, it is relatively normal for graphics DRAM prices to reverse course or undergo a more drastic fluctuation compared with other mainstream DRAM products. As such, should the cryptocurrency market remain bearish, and manufacturers of smartphones or PCs reduce their upcoming production volumes in light of the ongoing pandemic and component supply issues, graphics DRAM prices are unlikely to experience further increase in 4Q21. Instead, TrendForce expects prices in 4Q21 to largely hold flat compared to the third quarter.

The massive rise in market demand for notebook computers in response to distance learning needs and WFH applications from 2020 to 2021 has generated not only a double-digit growth in notebook panel shipment, but also a price hike of more than 40% for notebook panels, according to TrendForce's latest investigations. As various suppliers subsequently scramble to manufacture OLED, LTPS, and oxide panels, TrendForce forecasts these high-end notebook panels to reach a 17.8% market share in 2021 and 21.4% in 2022.

Panels based on OLED technology are primarily supplied by SDC, whose OLED notebook panel shipment for 2020 reached 800,000 pcs. SDC is expected to ship more than four million pcs of OLED notebook panels in 2021, with room for further growth in 2022. In addition to SDC, EDO is also expected to begin mass producing OLED notebook panels in 2H21-1H22. As such, TrendForce expects OLED panels to reach a 1.3% penetration rate in the overall notebook panel market this year. Although BOE and CSOT are currently fully engaged in Hybrid OLED development, Hybrid OLED panels will not enter mass production until 2023 due to technological and cost-related bottlenecks that are yet to be resolved.

The recent wave of COVID-19 outbreaks in India has weakened sales of retail storage products such as memory cards and USB drives, according to TrendForce's latest investigations. However, demand remains fairly strong in the main application segments due to the arrival of the traditional peak season and the growth in the procurement related to data centers. Hence, the sufficiency ratio of the entire market has declined further. NAND Flash suppliers have kept their inventories at a healthy level thanks to clients' stock-up activities during the past several quarters. Moreover, the ongoing shortage of NAND Flash controller ICs continues to affect the production of finished storage products. Taking account of these demand-side and supply-side factors, TrendForce forecasts that contract prices of NAND Flash products will rise marginally for 3Q21, with QoQ increases in the range of 5-10%.

As third quarters have typically been peak seasons for the production of various end-products, the sufficiency ratio of DRAM is expected to undergo a further decrease in 3Q21, according to TrendForce's latest investigations. However, DRAM buyers are now carrying a relatively high DRAM inventory due to their amplified purchases of electronic components in 1H21. The QoQ increase in DRAM contract prices are hence expected to slightly narrow from 18-23% in 2Q21 to 3-8% in 3Q21. Looking ahead to 4Q21, TrendForce believes that DRAM supply will continue to rise, thereby leading to either a further narrowing of price hikes or pressure constraining the potential price hike of DRAM products.

From the perspective of demand, the stay-at-home economy has resulted in persistently high demand for notebook computers. Although discrepancies still exist among notebook brands' inventory levels of various components, these brands are still making an aggressive attempt at maximizing their production of notebooks. However, as most of these brands are still carrying about 8-10 weeks' worth of PC DRAM inventory (which is relatively high), PC DRAM purchasing strategies from the buyers' side will therefore remain relatively conservative. From the perspective of supply, due to the rising demand for server DRAM, the production capacity allocated to PC DRAM is still in a severe supply crunch. Hence, DRAM suppliers are firm in their attitudes to raise PC DRAM quotes, and TrendForce expects the price negotiations between PC DRAM buyers and suppliers in 3Q21 to become both lengthier and more difficult as a result, with contract prices likely finalized at the end of July. Even so, what is now certain is that both sides have reached some level of understanding regarding the ongoing price hike of PC DRAM products. TrendForce forecasts a 3-8% increase in PC DRAM contract prices for 3Q21.

The German media outlet, 3D Center, has today published an updated report for July, measuring graphics card pricing in Germany and Austria, showing some pretty interesting results. The report is only measuring the pricing index of these two countries and their retailers, so it does not apply to other regions. An interesting discovery is that GPU prices have now hit the lowest point since February of this year when the sharp price incline started. At the time of reporting, GPU prices are exaggerated by around 53% over the MSRP listed prices. Not only did the prices drop, but the supply of GPUs like AMD Radeon RX 6800, Radeon RX 6800 XT, and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti became much better, as consumers can get their hands on these now.

When looking at the graph below, note that MSRP is listed as 100%, and the percentage shown is the increase over that MSRP. When it comes to complete price reduction to the MSRP, 3D Center expects it to happen in 3-4 weeks possibly. If current data is to be believed, MSRP is slowly decreasing and supply is increasing rapidly. For more details and per-card pricing situation, head over to 3D Center website here. Here is an important statement from 3D Center about the current situation:

3D Center (translated from German)Of course, this means that current street prices for graphics cards are (mostly) still exaggerated - and above all that this is the worst possible time to buy a graphics card. Because the (now clearly verifiable) tendency points to clearly lower graphics card prices in the next few weeks, with a similar pace, street prices at list price level could be in sight in 3-4 weeks. It is possible that there will be a certain braking effect in the downward price movement beforehand - but at least the way up to that point should definitely be taken with you. Apparently the delivery quantities are currently sufficient, maybe the need is a bit lower because of the summer times (and no longer available on the part of the crypto miners)so that retailers receive more cards than they sell. Since the retailers usually bought their cards from the distributors at an exaggerated price, the big game is now about who can get rid of the expensive stock goods in time to make a profit at all in the face of constantly falling sales prices.

TrendForce's investigations find that DRAM suppliers and major PC OEMs are currently participating in the critical period of negotiating with each other over contract prices for 2Q21. Although these negotiations have yet to be finalized, the ASP of mainstream DDR4 1G*8 2666 Mbps modules has already increased by nearly 25% QoQ as of now, according to data on ongoing transactions. This represents a higher price hike than TrendForce's prior forecast of "nearly 20%". On the other hand, prices are likewise rising across various DRAM product categories in 2Q21, including DDR3/4 specialty DRAM, mobile DRAM, graphics DRAM, and in particular server DRAM, which is highly related to PC DRAM and is therefore also undergoing a higher price hike than previously expected. TrendForce is therefore revising up its forecast of overall DRAM price hike for 2Q21 from 13-18% QoQ to 18-23% QoQ instead. However, the actual increase in prices of various DRAM product categories will depend on the production capacities allocated to the respective products by DRAM suppliers.

In the upstream semiconductor industry, the major foundries such as TSMC and UMC are reporting fully loaded capacities, while in the downstream, the available production capacity for OSAT is also lacking, according to TrendForce's latest investigations. Given this situation, suppliers of NAND Flash controller ICs such as Phison and Silicon Motion are now unable to meet upside demand from their clients. Not only have many controller IC suppliers temporarily stopped offering quotes for new orders, but they are also even considering raising prices soon because the negotiations between NAND Flash suppliers and module houses over 1Q21 contracts are now at the critical juncture. The potential increases in prices of controller ICs from outsourced suppliers (IC design houses) are currently estimated to be the range of 15-20%.

With regards to the demand side, demand has risen significantly for eMMC solutions with medium- and low-density specifications (i.e., 64 GB and lower), for which NAND Flash suppliers have mostly stopped updating the NAND Flash process technology, while maintaining support with the legacy 2D NAND or the 64L 3D NAND process. This is on account of strong sales for Chromebook devices and TVs. As older processes gradually account for a lowering portion of bit output proportions from NAND Flash suppliers, these companies are exhibiting a lowered willingness to directly supply such eMMC products to clients. As a result, clients now need to turn to memory module houses, which are able to source NAND Flash components and controllers, to procure eMMC products in substantial quantities.

Semiconductor manufacturing is a risky business. Not only is it heavily capital-intensive, which means that even some state-backed would-be players can fail in pooling together the required resources for an industry break-in; but the entire nature of the manufacturing process is a delicate balance of materials, nearly-endless fabrication, cleanup, and QA testing. Wafer manufacturing can take months between the initial fabrication stages through to the final packaging process; and this means that power outages or material contamination can jeopardize an outrageous number of in-fabrication semiconductors.

Recent news as covered by DigiTimes place one of Micron's fabrication plants in Taiwan as being hit with a 1-hour long power outage, which can potentially affect 10% of the entire predictable DRAM supply for the coming months (a power outage affects every step of the manufacturing process). Considering the increased demand for DRAM components due to the COVID-19 pandemic and associated demand for DRAM-inside products such as PCs, DIY DRAM, laptops, and tablets, industry players are now expecting a price hike for DRAM throughout 2021 until this sudden supply constraint is dealt with. As we know, DRAM manufacturers and resellers are a fickle bunch when it comes to increasing prices in even the slightest, dream-like hint of reduced supply. It remains to be seen how much of this 10% DRAM supply is actually salvageable, but projecting from past experience, a price hike seems to be all but guaranteed.

Prices of mid-range and high-end graphics cards could rise over the course of 2018, warns a report by Taiwan-based industry observer DigiTimes. The report quotes a USD $5-20 increase (we're guessing that's bill-of-material/BOM cost). Tight supply of memory chips and GPUs are attributed to the price hikes. Crypto-currency mining is a key factor, according to the report. Demand for graphics cards by miners hasn't waned (perhaps associated with Ethereum's all-time high value), which could further strain graphics card supplies throughout 2018.

Major Taiwan-based graphics card vendors, such as ASUS, MSI, GIGABYTE, benefited from the GPU-accelerated crypto-currency mining boom of 2017, and sales went down only slightly towards Q4-2017. On the other end of the spectrum, rising popularity of online multi-player games such as "Player Unknown's Battlegrounds," has triggered PC upgrades, further straining graphics card supply, the report states.

Overclockers UK staff member Gibbo, who posted the renowned British company's Vega stocks and deals for the red team's graphics cards, has just come out with something that might put our inner buyers to attention. Apparently, AMD has allowed launch prices to be as they currently are ($499 for the Vega 64 and $399 for the Vega 56 in the Americas; £549 for the Vega 64 in the UK) through rebates and other offers to retailers, who, according to Gibbo, couldn't keep those prices at all if that was not the case. According to the Overclockers UK staffer, " (...) the good news is AMD are rebating early launch sales to allow us to hit £449.99 on the stand alone black card which has no games. This is a launch only price which AMD at present are saying will be withdrawn in the near future, when if it happens is unknown, but remember do not be shocked if the price jumps nearly £100 in a few days. This time around there is no early adopter tax, quite the opposite on the stand alone black card, so do be quick."

Continuing the trend of previous reports, DRAMeXchange, a division of TrendForce, reports the general price increase in the PC DRAM market is growing larger than anticipated as the already tight supply situation is compounded by quality problems with products made on the leading-edge processes. Based on a preliminary survey of completed contracts for the second quarter, DRAMeXchange estimates that the average contract price of 4GB DDR4 modules will go up by about 12.5% compared with the first quarter, from US$24 to around US$27.

"PC-OEMs that have been negotiating their second-quarter memory contracts initially expected the market supply to expand because Samsung and Micron have begun to produce on the 18 nm and the 17 nm processes, respectively," said Avril Wu, research director of DRAMeXchange. "However, both Samsung and Micron have encountered setbacks related to sampling and yield, so the supply situation remains tight going into the second quarter and PC DRAM prices will continue to rise through this three-month period."