Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear—the situation in China’s graphics card market is taking a turn for the worse. Indeed, we’re seeing a sharp spike in graphics card prices across the country. While NVIDIA is raising prices on its GPU/VRAM kits due to a memory shortage, the rest of the supply chain is also taking advantage of the situation to prepare for revenue declines, while others are engaging in outright speculation!
China: Graphics Card Prices Skyrocketing!
High-end models are particularly affected:
Naturally, these price hikes are linked to memory; as a result, high-end graphics cards are the hardest hit. This translates to the following increases:
- RTX 5090D: +22.5%
- RTX 5090D V2: +12.8%
- RTX 5080: > $1,500
- RTX 5070 Ti: +21.8%
- RTX 5070: +16.2%
- RTX 5060: +15%
- RTX 5050: +13.2%
AMD cards aren’t escaping the price hikes either, with increases ranging from 14.3% to 28.8% depending on the model, while Intel cards have gone from around $200 to $300.
In light of this trend, we cannot deny that the price increases are linked to memory costs. NVIDIA has reportedly announced the new prices: they are said to be around $90 for 8 GB cards, $130 for 12 GB models, and $175 for 16 GB cards.
AIBs are also raising their prices:
Naturally, AIBs—NVIDIA partners such as ASUS and MSI—are also raising their retail prices, since they are the ones purchasing the GPU/VRAM kits from NVIDIA. As a result, Colorful is implementing price increases of up to 40–50% on its cards. As for MSI, the price increases are more reasonable, ranging from 10 to 20%. However, the RTX 5090D V2 24 GB is already priced at around $4,000, while certain models of the RTX 5080 can range from $1,400 to $1,900.
Furthermore, others are accused of excessively raising their prices to maximize their profit margins. ASUS is cited in this context for a pre-built PC that went from 55,500 yuan to 59,000 yuan—or from about 7,190 euros to 7,650 euros—in a single day.
Retailers Speculating:
Retailers are also taking advantage of the situation to speculate on the current price hikes. Some stores, seeing their suppliers raise their selling prices and temporarily close their warehouses, have reportedly doubled their prices and/or pulled their cards from sale. The goal: to maximize profits and hold onto inventory by reselling products purchased at reasonable prices at even higher prices!
The consequences?
Of course, we must distinguish between price increases due to technical reasons—such as rising memory costs and the inability to absorb those costs—and speculation. In any case, the consequences remain the same: a decline in graphics card sales and a slowdown in the IT sector as a whole. Indeed, if prices are too high, consumers will not upgrade their hardware and will wait for better times. As for speculators hoping to make a quick buck, they may have to shut down shop, just as happened during the first market correction.
Furthermore, let’s not forget that the bulk of sales occurs in the entry-level and mid-range segments. But when you consider that some RTX 5060 Ti cards reached $738 in a single month and that RTX 3050 cards climbed to over $350… you have to think things will turn out just fine.
