Continuing to ride the wave of rising prices amid part shortages, the DRAM market will grow by more than 30% this year and is well on its way to surpassing the $100 billion mark — becoming the first category of semiconductor to hit that milestone — according to industry analysts.

Market research firms IC Insights and International Business Strategies (IBS) have both in recent days issued forecasts that DRAM would eclipse $100 billion. However, while IC Insights predicts that it will happen this year, IBS forecasts it will occur in 2019. The DRAM market surged by 78% in 2017.

According to IC Insights (Scottsdale, Ariz.), DRAM sales are expected to grow by 39% this year to reach $101.6 billion. The firm predicts that DRAM will lead all categories of semiconductor devices in sales in 2018 for a second consecutive year. IC Insights forecasts that the overall chip market will grow by 15% this year.

IBS (Los Gatos, Calif.), meanwhile, forecasts that the DRAM market will grow 32.6% this year and that the broader semiconductor market will grow by 12.5%.

IBS predicts that the DRAM market will be worth $95.5 billion this year, growing to $104.2 billion in 2019.
Source: IBS

IC Insights estimates that DRAM will account for 24% of overall chip sales in 2018. NAND flash — which the firm predicts will be the second biggest selling chip this year — is forecast to reach $62.8 billion in sales. DRAM and NAND together, IC Insights estimates, will account for 38% of the $428 billion chip market this year.

DRAM market share by vendor.
Source: IBS