Drive shortage pushes price up

The floods that are still wreaking havoc in Thailand – which produces about 60% of the world’s hard drives – have created a drive shortage that is directly affecting their price.

Recently, the price for hard disks soared 17% in just one day – and prices have escalated around 200% in three weeks, according to local ICT distributor, Syntech SA.

Ryan Martyn, a director of Syntech SA, says company sales of hard disk drives have spiked due to the hard-felt shortage. The company is also experiencing a surge in sales of solid state drives (SSDs), which are being seen as an alternative by end users – especially as a result of the current shortage of hard drives.

“Despite the shortage we have managed to maintain a relatively good supply of hard disks – albeit at much higher prices. We don’t see this shortage abating any time soon and supply will arguably only return to normal in the first or second quarter of next year. In the meantime we are doing the best we can to supply our reseller base with product.”

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