[News] NAND Flash Price Hikes Reportedly Set for Q3, with Supply Shortage Likely Stretching Into 2026

As memory giants wind down DDR4 production, DRAM prices are climbing, and now NAND prices are set to follow suit. According to Commercial Times, industry sources predict NAND price hikes in Q3, with products under 512Gb seeing the largest increases.

As per TrendForce, while suppliers shift focus to higher-margin products, the overall supply in circulation has tightened. Looking ahead to Q3, TrendForce projects average NAND Flash contract prices to rise by 5% to 10%.

Commercial Times suggests that the price surge is largely driven by production cuts from major manufacturers like Micron and SanDisk, starting in the second half of 2024. Due to widespread production cuts by manufacturers, NAND supply shortages are expected to persist into the second half of 2025, possibly extending into 2026, the report adds.

According to a previous Commercial Times report, the top five NAND Flash makers have cut production, fueling an upswing in memory pricing. The report suggests that major NAND manufacturers, including Samsung, SK hynix, Micron, Kioxia, and Western Digital, have all launched production cuts of 10% to 15% in the first half of 2025.

512Gb, TLC/QLC Prices Hold Firm

Notably, the largest price increases this time are anticipated for products under 512Gb, as these low-margin items were prioritized for production cuts, the report adds.

Commercial Times explains that unlike enterprise-grade high-capacity products that usually follow long-term contracts, NAND products under 512Gb mainly circulate in module and distribution markets, where inventory levels are already low. Coupled with the fact that these products experienced the steepest price declines over the past two years, there’s now significant room for a strong price rebound, the report says.

Notably, TrendForce points out that overall NAND Flash output is declining, with suppliers focusing on high-margin products and cutting wafer supply. As a result, wafer prices for 3D NAND (TLC & QLC) are expected to rise by 8% to 13% in the third quarter.

This aligns with Commercial Time’s view, which notes that as companies allocate more resources toward developing high-capacity QLC products, the focus has gradually shifted away from mature TLC processes, tightening the supply of low-capacity wafers.

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• [News] Top Five NAND Manufacturers Reportedly Cut Production by 10-15%, Fueling Q2 Price Rebound

(Photo credit: Micron)