Motherboard prices to rise in first half of 2011

[Emil]

Prices of motherboards are expected to rise by 5 to 10 percent on average, or up to 15 percent, in the first half of 2011. These are just estimates, made by industry sources cited by DigiTimes, and may change as other factors affect the market.

Nevertheless, Asus has already raised its prices for motherboards. Chewei Lin, general manager of motherboard business unit at Asustek, said the rates will increase depending on market demand and position in different areas.

Lin explains that the price hike is in response to the labor shortage in China, the NT dollar's appreciation, and rising material costs (copper has soared to over US$9,000 per ton, after rising about 30 percent in the past six months). He tried to emphasize, however, that the overall purchasing costs for consumers will not increase significantly thanks to the growth momentum of motherboards and prices sliding in some key PC parts and components under DIY channels.

The good news is that nobody buys just motherboards. It's difficult to predict how fluctuating prices for each component will affect the final sale price of a computer. For example, DRAM prices are expected to keep falling in the first half of this year.

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https://www.techspot.com/news/42122-motherboard-prices-to-rise-in-first-half-of-2011.html

 

[fpsgamerJR62]

While the cost of a new motherboard is a key factor in every PC upgrade, a 5 to 15 percent increase in motherboard prices will likely be tempered by competitive CPU and GPU prices and also by the continued downturn of DRAM prices in H1 2011.

 

[Guest]

Both the rising price of fuel and US dollar devaluation will have a direct impact on the price of hardware. The cost of shipping products from the factory to the warehouse and then to the store will be passed on to the consumer.

 

[JMMD]

Everyone wants more money. Any chance they can get they want more money.

 

[Obi-Wan Jerkobi]

Well, a 10% increase in price in a motherboard that is only 50 dollars isn't that bad.

 

[MilwaukeeMike]

@JMMD, they're not doing this because they want more money. Raising the price of your product doesn't give you more money, it would probably result in less because customers would buy someone else's product.

I'd expect it has to do with material costs, since that's what given as evidence. A quick google on the 'price of copper' showed it went from about 3 bucks a pound to over 4 in 6 months, which is 30%, exactly what the author says it was. It's common sense that mother boards would be the most sensitive to this since they're the biggest component in your computer. Not everything is a conspiracy.