Owing to the surge in DRAM prices, one kilogram of memory chips manufactured in Korea is now worth as much as 620 grams of gold. The global memory shortage, ushered in by the ongoing AI infrastructure buildout, has led to triple-digit percentage increases in memory chip prices. Owing to the price rises, memory companies SK hynix and Samsung have also paid generous bonuses to their employees, with Micron's workers in Taiwan also purportedly interested in similar bonuses.
Data From Korean Trade Statistics Agency Shows One Kg Of DRAM Costs As Much As 620 Grams Of Gold
Data from Korea's Trade Statistics Promotion Institute (TRASS), quoted by ChosunBiz, shows that from August 1st to August 20th, the export unit price for DRAM was $92,183 per kilogram, which translates into roughly KRW127 million. The price marked a whopping 401% annual jump and was 12.5 times higher than prices in January 2023, when the AI buildout was in its earliest phases after OpenAI opened ChatGPT to the public in November 2022.
Comparing this to gold prices in Korea, the latest data shows that 620 grams of 24-karat gold costs KRW126.6 million. Gold prices have fluctuated higher in 2026 primarily due to the weakness of the US dollar and global economic uncertainty stemming from the higher energy costs from the conflict in Iran.
Image credits - Micron
The higher memory chip prices have also had an impact on several firms. One of the most widely reported impacts has been on consumer electronics giant Apple. Apple raised its prices for several products earlier this year, and the firm is also aggressively lobbying the US government to buy memory chips from China's CXMT. CXMT's IPO set records in China, and the firm aims to create a place for itself in the global memory market due to the shortage.
The global memory market is effectively controlled by Korea's SK hynix and Samsung and America's Micron, with the latter expanding capacity in America to reduce the tech sector's reliance on the global supply chain.
The higher prices have also forced computer manufacturers to reshape their procurement strategies. For instance, one of MSI's latest gaming laptops, the Katana 15 HX C14W, relies on DDR4 memory chips along with the newer DDR5 chips. Additionally, multiple reports have also suggested that NVIDIA might also feel the memory price crunch. Recent reports have suggested that the servers with the firm's Rubin GPUs could see their prices rise by anywhere between 15% to 17%, with memory accounting for a large portion of the bill.
About the author: Ramish is a seasoned technology writer and editor with more than a decade of experience. He specializes in semiconductor fabrication and market analysis. With a background in finance and supply chain management - via his bachelors in Finance and a micromasters in supply chain management from MIT - Ramish combines financial rigor with deep industry insight to deliver accurate and authoritative coverage.
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