TeamGroup warns memory supplies will tighten further as prices rise
The Taiwanese manufacturer says existing supply contracts are not delivering enough chips, forcing it to pay premiums on the spot market.
TeamGroup CEO Chen Ching-wen has warned that memory prices will continue rising for months and that shortages could leave customers unable to obtain products even when they can afford higher prices. He expects the most severe shortages between the final quarter of 2026 and the end of the second quarter of 2027.
The Taiwanese supplier of computer memory, solid-state drives and other chip-based products depends on major memory manufacturers for chips. Chen said contracted deliveries were insufficient, requiring TeamGroup to buy additional supplies on the spot market at a premium.
According to the company, contract prices for DDR5 16Gb chips increased from $8.70 in October 2025 to $48 in September 2026. It also reported rising DDR4 8Gb prices and spot-market premiums of 30% to 50%.
TeamGroup's customer mix has shifted toward enterprises and industrial control applications. Business-to-business customers accounted for 64% of revenue in the first three quarters of 2026, compared with roughly 24% a year earlier. The consumer share declined from 75% to 35% over those periods.
Chen attributed that shift to changing demand rather than a unilateral strategic decision by TeamGroup. He said AI data centers and other enterprise applications now absorb most of the industry's DRAM output.
For Q3 2026, TeamGroup reported revenue of NT$10.139 billion, up 33% from the preceding quarter. Operating profit increased 46.8% to NT$4.511 billion, while after-tax net profit rose nearly 50% to NT$3.618 billion.
