Samsung Electronics (SSNLF) President Wonjin Lee has issued a stark warning about the rising cost of memory, which has driven a rally in the semiconductor industry. Speaking at CES 2026, Lee highlighted that the growing prices are beginning to impact the entire supply chain, from manufacturers to consumers.
“There’s going to be issues around semiconductor supplies, and it’s going to affect everyone,” Lee said in an interview with Bloomberg. “Prices are going up even as we speak. Obviously, we don’t want to convey that burden to the consumers, but we’re going to be at a point where we have to actually consider repricing our products.”
The warning comes as companies like Dell (DELL) and HP Enterprise (HPE) have already alerted their customers to expect price hikes on certain products due to rising memory costs. HPE has acknowledged that memory prices have surged, but management remains optimistic about passing these costs onto consumers.
Samsung and SK hynix (HXSC.F), the world’s two largest memory makers, are currently facing competition from U.S.-based Micron Technology (MU). The demand for high-bandwidth memory, especially for data centers and GPUs, has led to a shortage, exacerbating the price rise. Reports indicate that Samsung and SK hynix are considering raising server memory prices by up to 70% in the first quarter of 2026.
Micron’s recent quarterly results exceeded expectations, and analysts suggest the company is in the midst of a “memory supercycle.” This surge in memory demand, which began in March 2025, was particularly pronounced in the fourth quarter, according to Wedbush Securities analyst Matt Bryson.
