Analysts predict full recovery for DRam

Oversupply and falling prices in the DRam market are not set to last as companies attempt to recover from a disastrous 1998.

A report from Dataquest and the Hyundai Research Institute suggests the semiconductor market is expected to recover and enter a period of rapid growth lasting several years.

The price for 64Mbit DRam has fallen to about $8, but Hyundai expects a further slide to about $6.40 towards the end of the year, before the start of a long-term boom that could last until 2002.

Dataquest also predicted a boom, with double-figure revenue growth for the next three years culminating in a year of 21.6 per cent growth in 2001.

Ron Bohn, director of research for semiconductors at Dataquest, said: 'A key assumption is a DRam shortage starting in late 2000, which will cause DRam revenue to peak in 2001. After that, the DRam cycle of oversupply will repeat itself.'

The semiconductor market is expected to grow from $153 billion in 1999 to $244 billion by 2003, with DRam as the main influence. The anticipated increase in demand for memory is expected to be generated by growing PC sales, communications devices and consumer electronics, which account for more than two-thirds of the market.