Flash Memory Prices Soar After Japan Quake
As rescue and cleanup efforts continue in northern Japan, the impact of last week’s devastating earthquake and tsunami is beginning to be felt in the global economy. Most immediately, the price of Japanese-produced flash memory chips, which are used in items like personal computers, smart phones and USB drives, has risen sharply among fears of a supply shortage. "It will be very difficult for the next week because prices are in such flux," says Lon McGowan, CEO of supplier iClick (asi/62124), which sells USB drives and other memory products in the ad specialty market. "Our factories in China say chips are up anywhere between 30%-50%. We've tried to be as open as we can with our customers. We've already had 1,200 customers come to us with questions."
According to analysts, Japan accounts for 40% of global NAND flash chip production. Toshiba Corporation, the world's second-largest maker of NAND chips after South Korea's Samsung, has halted operations at its plants in areas affected by rolling power outages. Also, Shin-Etsu Chemical Co. and Sumco Corp., which both make silicon wafers needed to produce semiconductors, have temporarily stopped operations because of damage from the earthquake.
Source: Counselor Magazine (ASI)
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