Trendforce’s latest investigations reveal that the global macroeconomic outlook for 2026 remains weak, with geopolitical tensions and ongoing inflation continuing to dampen consumer demand. Notably, the memory industry has begun a robust upward pricing cycle, increasing overall system costs. This forces downstream brands to hike retail prices, which adds pressure on the consumer market.
TrendForce’s latest investigations reveal that despite higher ASPs boosting profitability across the memory industry, capital spending on DRAM and NAND Flash is only anticipated to increase modestly in 2026. This limited investment growth is unlikely to significantly affect bit output. Instead, the emphasis is shifting from capacity expansion to advancements such as process technology upgrades, higher-layer stacking, hybrid bonding, and high-value products such as HBM.
TrendForce’s latest investigations reveal that global shipments of smartphone panels reached 586 million units in the third quarter of 2025, up 8.1% QoQ and 5.3% YoY. This growth was driven by increased panel demand for the iPhone 17 series and new models from leading smartphone brands in the latter half of the year. AMOLED panels continued to see strong demand, while LCD panels remained stable for entry-level devices and replacement markets. For 2025, total smartphone panel shipments are forecast to reach 2.243 billion units, a 3.4% increase compared to 2024, marking a recent high in shipment levels.
TrendForce’s latest research indicates that the global client SSD market experienced a price low in 2023, followed by gradual stabilization of supply and demand and a price rebound in 2024. However, retail SSD sales face challenges due to ongoing weak consumer electronics demand and notebook SSD attach rates reaching 100%. This has led to reduced shipments from SSD module makers. Channel SSD shipments for 2024 are projected at 101 million units, reflecting a 14% YoY decrease.
As major North American CSPs release their latest earnings and investment outlooks, TrendForce has increased its 2025 CapEx forecast for the top eight CSPs worldwide from 61% YoY growth to 65%. For 2026, CSPs are anticipated to continue investing aggressively, with total CapEx expected to exceed US$600 billion, marking a 40% YoY increase. This trend highlights the strong long-term growth potential of AI infrastructure.