Samsung's union-led strike is not scheduled to begin until the tail-end of next week. Yet, as talks between the management and the union broke down on Wednesday in what might as well be a death knell for further negotiations, spot prices for various memory configurations are on the march, with this inflationary impulse most noticeable in the world's biggest market for electronics, Shenzhen Huaqiangbei.
The world's biggest electronics market is giving an early sample of the mayhem that awaits the global memory sphere next week, when Samsung is all set to enter utter paralysis
According to a Taiwanese publication, the price of a typical 8GB DDR4 module has increased by around 20 percent in Shenzhen Huaqiangbei this week. This aligns with the latest quotation from the China Flash Market (CFM), which posits that the spot price of an 8GB DDR4 module has risen by 20 percent in a single week to $18, ending the weakness within the spot market that had ensued in the wake of Google's release of TurboQuant.
Similarly, the price of a 64GB DDR5 RDIMM has now reached $1,350 after recording a month-over-month increase of 11 percent. The threat of a Samsung strike also seems to have stabilized NAND flash prices, halting the recent decline in prices for mainstream products such as the 1Tb QLC, 1Tb TLC, and 512Gb TLC.
Meanwhile, as we detailed earlier today, the latest 17-hour marathon round of negotiations between Samsung's management and its unionized workers has collapsed, setting the stage for widespread strike-led operational disruption starting from next Thursday, with 41,000 unionized workers having already expressed their intent to join the strike. Eventually, this number can swell beyond 50,000.
For the benefit of those who might not be aware, Samsung's union workers are currently demanding 15 percent of the company's annual operating profit, which amounts to around $30 billion, in bonuses. Otherwise, these union workers are threatening an 18-day strike that would begin on May 21 and last until June 07.
At any rate, this strike could have far-reaching consequences for the memory sphere, especially given Samsung's apex position within the industry, with recovery timelines extending to as much as 36 days following the culmination of the 18-day strike, entailing operational losses of around $20 billion for Samsung alone.
About the author: Writing is my one incontrovertible passion. Over the past six years, he has authored over 2,200 distinct articles on financial and tech-related topics, spanning nearly 1 million words. And he has been a member of Wcctech mobile team since 2025. As an alumnus of the University of Toronto, Rotman Commerce Program, I bring nuance, in-depth knowledge, and a unique perspective to every topic that I cover. When I'm not writing, I'm traveling the world, exploring hidden confectionaries and restaurants as an aspiring food connoisseur.
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