Bad news for consumers, as rumors from the Chinese website Board Channels suggest that AMD may raise prices again. The increase is reportedly 10% and would apply to GPU kits sold to its partners, taking effect as early as this July. The question remains: how will this increase affect consumers? We don’t know that yet.
AMD: Heading Toward a 10% Price Increase on Its GPU Kits!
A price hike affecting the brand’s partners:
Broadly speaking, this 10% increase would not directly affect consumers, but rather AMD’s partners. In fact, the company is reportedly implementing a 10% price increase on its GPU +VRAM kits sold to brands such as Sapphire, XFX, ASUS, etc. Obviously, the reason is directly related to the ongoing shortages in the memory sector.
To put it simply, AMD directly manages negotiations with memory manufacturers, which allows the company to secure the best prices while guaranteeing its partners a steady supply of these two components. In contrast, if each AIB had to handle its own negotiations, prices would potentially be higher—or there might be no memory at all, depending on each company’s negotiating skills.
The impact on consumers is still difficult to gauge:
For now, it’s difficult for end consumers to gauge the impact of these price increases. Indeed, it remains to be seen how AMD’s partners will pass on these increases. Some—the largest ones—benefit from sufficient sales and production volumes to absorb these increases and are therefore willing to absorb the cost themselves. For others, this is not necessarily the case.
Another concern involves unscrupulous retailers who might use this information to raise their selling prices in the coming days. In any case, AMD’s RX 9000 series graphics cards are currently available at very competitive prices. Some limited-time promotions even bring them below their MSRP!
