【双语】存储芯片行情逆转 废旧手机回收价格腰斩

(Yicai) April 24 -- A sudden and sharp decline in memory chip prices has caused recycling prices for used smartphones to slump by as much as half this month.

本月，存储芯片价格突然大幅下跌，导致废旧智能手机的回收价格暴跌了一半。

Recycling prices for used phones have generally dropped by around 45 percent to 50 percent in April, according to Lao Li, a veteran recycler working in Shenzhen Huaqiang North Commercial Circle, the world’s largest electronics marketplace.

全球最大电子交易市场深圳华强北商圈资深回收商老李表示，4月份二手手机回收价格普遍下跌45% 至 50%。

With the global supply of memory tight since the second half of last year, Dynamic Random-Access Memory chips that can be removed from old phones and reused have became a scarce and valuable substitute as they cost only 40 percent to 60 percent of new ones.

自去年下半年起，全球存储芯片供应持续紧张，从旧手机上拆下并重新使用的动态随机存取存储器（DRAM）芯片成为稀缺且有价值的替代品，其成本仅为新芯片的40%至60%。

In the first quarter of this year, the price of conventional DRAM soared by 90 percent to 95 percent, while the price of NAND Flash jumped by 55 percent to 60 percent. Against this backdrop, several recyclers told Yicai that a scrapped handset that cost only CNY20 (USD2.93) last year could sell for at least CNY100 (USD14.63) or even CNY200 last month.

今年一季度，常规DRAM芯片价格暴涨90%至95%，NAND闪存芯片价格飙升55%至60%。在此背景下，多名回收商向第一财经透露，去年仅售价20元人民币（约合2.93美元）的报废手机，上月回收价至少卖到100元人民币（约合14.63美元），部分机型甚至可达200元。

Handsets that can be dismantled for DRAM chips have seen the steepest price declines, Li said.

老李称，可拆解出DRAM芯片的机型（业内俗称“环保机”）回收价格跌幅最大。

The downturn is driven by a sudden fall in memory costs in the first week of this month, according to industry data. The average price of a single mainstream 16 gigabyte DDR5 chip has dropped more than 40 percent from over CNY980 in late March to around CNY550 to CNY600.

行业数据显示，本轮行情下行，源于本月第一周存储芯片成本的骤然走低。主流 16G DDR5 单条芯片均价已从3月底的980多元人民币跌至550至600元人民币左右，跌幅超过40%。

The latest market turbulence has fully exposed the vulnerability of the recycling industry for second-hand electronic devices, Li told Yicai. Profits in the sector depend heavily on upstream commodity prices, while speculation is rampant, leaving it without stable value support or the ability to withstand risk. He believes that as the market bubble gradually clears, used phone recycling prices will return to a reasonable range.

老李向第一财经表示，此番市场剧烈波动，彻底暴露了二手电子设备回收行业的脆弱性。该行业利润高度依附上游大宗商品价格，同时市场投机风气盛行，缺乏稳定价值支撑与风险抵御能力。他认为，随着市场泡沫逐步消退，二手手机回收价格将回归合理区间。

The swing in chip prices have drawn regulatory scrutiny. Earlier this week, an official with the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology said recent memory price increases had already spilled over to handsets and garnered widespread attention.

芯片价格的剧烈波动已引发监管部门关注。本周早些时候，工信部相关负责人表示，此前存储芯片涨价效应已传导至手机终端，引发社会广泛关注。

In response to the issue, the official said the ministry will promote supply-demand matching and encourage both domestic and foreign producers to raise investment and expand production capacity.

针对该问题，该负责人回应称，工信部将推动供需精准匹配，鼓励国内外生产企业加大投入、扩充产能。

The ministry will also encourage device makers and memory chip suppliers to beef up coordination and broaden diversified supply channels. At the same time, it will cooperate with other government agencies to crack down on behavior that disrupts the market, including hoarding and speculation.

同时，工信部将推动终端厂商与存储芯片供应商深化协同合作，拓宽多元化供货渠道，并联合多部门严厉打击囤积居奇、恶意炒作等扰乱市场秩序的违法行为。