DRAM chipmakers Nanya Technology Corp (南亞科技) and Winbond Electronics Corp (華邦電子) saw shares rally more than 4 percent yesterday after DDR4 DRAM prices surged about 6 percent on average amid reducing supply.
Supply of DDR4 and low-power DDR4 DRAM chips has been dwindling as major global players such as SK Hynix Inc have been shifting to high-bandwidth memory (HBM) chips or advanced DDR5 DRAM chips in response to the artificial intelligence (AI) boom, with an aim of phasing out of DDR4 DRAM market.
Nanya primarily produces DDR4 DRAM chips currently.
Photo: Bloomberg
TrendForce Corp’s (集邦科技) data showed prices of DDR4 DRAM chips climbed 5.21 percent to 8.11 percent on the spot market in the afternoon of yesterday, with high-density DDR4 16GB climbed 4.76 percent to US$7.355 per unit, even surpassing new-generation DDR5 16GB’s US$5.901 per unit.
Due to the price spike, Nanya and Winbond yesterday temporarily halted trading of DDR4 chips, even though they sell most of their DRAM chips on a contract basis, TrendForce said.
Nanya in April said it expected a price uptick in DDR4 DRAM chips from this quarter on the back of production cuts from major players and the effect of China’s stimulus packages, which have boosted electronics sales and chip demand, it added.
As the third quarter is usually a high season for chip companies, Nanya in April said it expects further improvement in demand and chip prices.
The company said it aims to produce high-density DDR5 DRAM chips after fully upgrading its manufacutring technology to 10-nanometer-class process technology later this year from 20-nanometer technology.
It also plans to provide customized HBM chips for AI-enabled edge devices such as AI PCs and AI smartphones by the end of next year.
Nanya shares soared 9.85 percent to close at NT$59.1, while Winbond jumped 4.8 percent to NT$19.65. They have surged 29 percent and 16.27 percent respectively since the beginning of this month.
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