Flash Drive Prices Are Going Up – Cause: Japan & S. Korea Trade War

Japan has long been a major supplier of three key elements used in the manufacturing of NAND memory and semiconductors. Due to recent trade tensions between Japan and South Korea, these materials are becoming increasingly difficult to obtain.

Japan produces roughly 90% of the world’s supply of fluorinated polyimide and photoresists, along with about 70% of the global supply of hydrogen fluoride. This concentration places the global supply chain at risk if Japan restricts exports of these materials.

These chemicals are used by Korean manufacturers to produce semiconductors and are critical for making components such as memory chips, microprocessors, and integrated circuits.

The impact is already visible. For the first time in more than eight months, NAND memory pricing for flash drives has increased. While the percentage increase varies by capacity, the most notable jumps are in 32GB and 64GB wafers, which rose nearly 25% week over week at the time this article was published on July 25.

Japan has cited inadequate management of these chemicals by purchasing countries. Put another way, the materials can also be used in the manufacture of military weapons, and Japan claims some supplies have been diverted for that purpose. Japan’s response has been to impose restrictions on exports.

Who ultimately loses in this trade dispute? Anyone who relies on modern technology. Smartphones, processors, flash memory, circuit boards, and countless other products depend on a stable semiconductor supply chain.

For a more detailed and source-based report, visit this CNBC article.

To learn more about polyimide chemicals, a quick overview is available on this Wikipedia page.