According to the latest TrendForce research, despite the rapid weakening of overall consumer demand in 1H22, DRAM manufacturers previously presented a tough stance on price negotiations and gave little ground, steadily conveying inventory pressure from buyers to sellers. Facing uncertain peak-season demand in 2H22, some DRAM suppliers have begun effectively expressing clear intentions to cut prices, especially in the server field, where demand is relatively stable, in order to reduce inventory pressure. This situation will cause 3Q22 DRAM pricing to drop from the previous 3~8% to nearly 10% QoQ. If a price war is incited due to companies competing for sales, the drop in prices may exceed 10%.
According to TrendForce research, terminal demand remains weak due to repercussions of the Russian-Ukrainian war, rising inflation, and China's pandemic lockdowns as monitor brands began to reduce purchasing of LCD monitor panels in 2Q22. LCD monitors panel shipments in 2Q22 are estimated at 42.5 million units, down 11.3% QoQ.
According to TrendForce's latest Micro LED research report, among many Micro LED display applications, Micro LED microdisplays will be the next new high-end product following on the heels of large-scale display development. The market value of Micro LED AR smart glasses display chips is forecast to reach US$41 million by 2026. The reason for such a significant growth in market value in just one year from 2025 to 2026 is primarily due to the gradual maturity of technologies such as red chips, laser transfer, wafer bonding and full-colorization, which can improve yield and reduce production costs.
According to TrendForce research, observing recent server market dynamics, ODM’s prior production plans have begun to gradually cool. Since the material mismatch cycle has improved significantly, server motherboard suppliers' stocking momentum began falling off in 2Q22. At the same time, pandemic lockdowns in Shanghai have impacted the production of some ODMs. Particularly, enterprise orders led by Inventec have borne the brunt. Production plans including those of Dell and HPE have been significantly delayed but overall shipment performance will not be affected in the short term. Global server shipments are still forecast to grow by 6.5% QoQ in 3Q22, mainly due to continued support from demand generated by companies accelerating cloud migration post-pandemic.
According to TrendForce data, global wafer foundry capacity will increase by approximately 14% annually in 2022. Since expanding 8-inch capacity is not cost-effective and its growth rate is much lower than the overall industry average, 8-inch capacity will grow approximately 6% annually, while 12-inch capacity will grow 18% annually. Of this new capacity, approximately 65% of new 12-inch capacity will be in mature processes (28nm and above) with an annual growth rate of 20%. It is obvious that in 2022, most wafer foundries will focus on 12-inch wafer production capacity, with the main driving force behind production expansion coming from TSMC, UMC, SMIC, HuaHong Group’s HHGrace, and Nexchip.