PC Partner warns of rising GPU prices and budget card shortages — analyst suggests makers are hiking prices beyond memory costs

PC Partner, a manufacturer of graphics cards under brands such as AMD, Inno3D, Manli, Sapphire, and Zotac, warns that its costs are expected to rise significantly in the second half of 2026, leading t... Read original →

The GPU market is undergoing a structural transformation, with rising upstream memory costs and diverging downstream demand intensifying pricing pressures. Manufacturers like PC Partner face dual challenges of declining AIB orders and budget card shortages, while high-end product lines see revenue surges due to expanded profit margins. Advancements in 3nm and EUV processes by NVIDIA and AMD are pushing high-end graphics cards toward higher performance and lower power consumption, but this also exacerbates supply constraints in the mid-range segment. Geopolitical tensions, particularly export controls on semiconductors from Taiwan, China and the U.S., are further inflating supply chain costs, forcing companies to pass these increases onto consumers. Market players are leveraging media narratives to justify price hikes, capitalizing on supply-demand imbalances for profit maximization. Over the next 12 months, budget graphics cards are likely to remain scarce, while the high-end segment may experience a new growth cycle driven by AI computing demand.