Bernstein: Storage Bull Market May Continue Until 2027, but Growth Will Slow

On July 8, Wall Street investment bank Bernstein released its global storage monthly tracking report, indicating that the DRAM contract prices rose month-on-month in June, with the average price of traditional DRAM expected to increase by about 74% in the second quarter of 2026 compared to the first quarter. Among these, Server DRAM prices are expected to rise by about 60% to 67% in the second quarter, while Mobile DRAM is close to 80%. The spot market shows tight supply, with June PC DRAM spot prices rising by 5.6% to 11.5% month-on-month, and Server DRAM increasing by 6.1% to 26.4%. The report states that Server DDR5 is performing strongly, with spot prices significantly higher than contract prices, indicating that demand from AI and cloud service providers is still absorbing new production capacity. Bernstein warns that the pace of price increases will slow significantly in the third quarter, with TrendForce predicting that the price increase for traditional DRAM will drop to between 13% and 18% in the third quarter. PC, mobile, and consumer electronics customers are cutting back on configurations or adjusting their purchasing pace, and demand destruction may eventually become apparent. The NAND market situation is mixed, with June NAND wafer spot prices falling by 3% to 4%, while contract prices rose slightly by 0.3% to 3.7%. Strong price increases in mobile NAND and SSDs are expected to drive overall NAND contract prices up by about 60% in the second quarter. Bernstein believes that storage prices may remain strong until 2027, but in the second half of 2027 to 2028, as long-term agreements take effect and new production capacity comes online, prices will gradually normalize.