Samsung has recently raised its memory product quotation again, with an average price increase of about 30% in the second quarter of 2026. In the previous first quarter of 2026, its average memory price had increased by about 100% year-on-year, showing that the industry giant did not buy into the so-called "DRAM price collapse" argument. According to the Korean media "Electronic News", Samsung is currently implementing a quarter-on-quarter price increase strategy of about 30% for multiple types of DRAM products. These products include high-bandwidth memory (HBM) for artificial intelligence, as well as general-purpose DRAM used in servers, PCs and smartphones.
To illustrate with a simple example: If the price of a Samsung DRAM was 10,000 won in early 2025, it would have risen to 20,000 won in the first quarter of 2026, and now it has further risen to 26,000 won in the second quarter.
In this context, the widely circulated view in the market that "the drop in DRAM spot prices will trigger a complete collapse of the industry" is in sharp contrast to the pricing behavior of leading manufacturers. DRAM spot prices have indeed been moderately lowered recently, triggering sharp fluctuations in investor sentiment and putting stock prices of related companies under pressure. However, major suppliers including Samsung have remained relatively restrained and firm on production capacity and quotations, and instead took the opportunity to continue to push contract prices upward. Industry insiders predict that since Samsung has taken the lead in raising prices, another major manufacturer, SK Hynix and American manufacturer Micron, will most likely follow suit, pushing the overall price system of general DRAM to a higher level, thereby breaking the market expectation that "prices are about to collapse."
It should be pointed out that the current price pressure is mainly on the previous generation of DDR4 chips, and its decline is more due to "panic clearance" of excessive channel inventory rather than a systematic collapse of terminal demand. Statistics from DRAMeXchange, a market research organization, show that as of the end of March, the fixed contract price of DDR4 8Gb DRAM for PCs has remained generally flat month-on-month, with no significant trend decline yet. This means that although some old products are sold out at low prices, in the contract market, the bargaining power of mainstream DRAM is still in the hands of a few major suppliers, and the price structure has not yet collapsed.
In the field of smartphones, the pressure of rising memory prices is further amplifying the cost of the entire machine. A report from the analysis agency SemiAnalysis pointed out that the LPDDR5 contract price is currently about US$10 per GB, which has increased approximately three times compared with the first quarter of 2025, and is expected to usher in a new round of double-digit percentage increases by 2027. At the same time, the material cost structure of smartphones is being rapidly reshaped by memory and flash memory: taking entry-level models as an example, DRAM costs currently account for about 35% of the complete machine bill of materials (BOM), while NAND flash memory contributes about 19%. The two items together account for as much as 54%, becoming a key factor in compressing manufacturers' profit margins.
In terms of contract models, Samsung is also adjusting its supply strategy for its mobile phone business to prioritize ensuring profit margins. The report mentioned that Samsung rejected its internal DRAM supply request, which was originally enough to cover demand for more than a year, and instead adopted a short-term three-month contract signed on a quarterly basis in order to more flexibly adjust prices according to market conditions. Supported by demand for AI computing power, cloud computing and high-end mobile devices, Samsung apparently believes that the current supply and demand pattern in the memory market is sufficient to support its "rhythmic price increases", rather than about to enter a comprehensive price collapse cycle as some investors fear.