Electronic Component Market News – Week 5 of September
Memory Chips
1. CXMT and Yangtze Memory are ramping up capacity expansion. However, new capacity will be largely absorbed by domestic AI and cloud demand. The local memory market will stay in a tight balance before 2027, while supply shortages persist overseas.
2. Niche memory prices surge sharply. Contract prices of NOR Flash rose 100%–120% and SLC NAND rose 130%–150% in the first half of the year. NOR Flash and SLC NAND are expected to keep climbing 60%–75% in the second half.
3. SK Hynix has raised NAND export prices by 8%–12% starting Q3, with lead times extended to 14–16 weeks. Capacity is prioritized for AI data center customers.
4. Biwin Storage’s AI edge storage revenue in H1 jumped 433.58% year-on-year. Its automotive-grade memory products have been adopted by more than 40 vehicle manufacturers and Tier 1 suppliers. TrendForce forecasts Q3 DRAM prices to rise 13~18% quarter-on-quarter and NAND prices 10~15%.
5. Spot memory prices increased 5.47% over the past 30 days, with a year-on-year gain of 332.56%. The spot price of 24GB 12-Hi HBM3 stays above $200 per stack.
Passive Components
1. MLCC faces structural shortage. Murata raised prices of high-capacity AI and automotive grades by 30%–35% in September. Lead times for high-end parts have been extended to 20–26 weeks. The manufacturer continues phasing out low-margin consumer parts and shifting capacity to high-capacity AI MLCC.
2. Samsung Electro-Mechanics has adjusted MLCC prices multiple times this year; high-end X6S for AI applications increased by 10%–20%. Sanhuan and Fenghua are receiving diverted orders. Qualification of domestic high-end MLCC is accelerating, yet yields for ultra-high-capacity variants still lag behind Japanese suppliers.
Other Updates
1. The downward trend for 8-inch SiC substrates has reversed, with manufacturers rolling out collective price hikes in 2026. Low-end 6-inch substrates remain oversupplied, while high-end automotive-grade 8-inch substrates are in short supply.
2. ADI’s company-wide price increase took effect in mid-September, with military-grade parts up as much as 30%. TI has signaled its third round of pricing adjustments; power ICs for AI servers will increase by 15%–25%.
3. Taiwan’s full-year PCB output value will exceed NT$1.1365 trillion for the first time. Multilayer boards and substrates see strong growth, while flexible boards show sluggish gains. Market performance is heavily tied to AI server demand.