IHS: High prices generate record Q1 revenue for HDD market
The global hard disk drive (HDD) industry has generated record revenue in Q1, thanks to higher selling prices that compensated for the damaged caused by the October floods in Thailand, according to a report by IHS Suppli.
HDD revenue in Q1 reached $9.6billion, beating the previous industry record of $9.3bn in Q1 2010. The report states the rise in revenue occurred even though the Q1 shipments of 145million units were less than the 174m of Q3 last year before the floods.
"Revenue in the first quarter was up because of a rise in HDD average selling prices to approximately $66.28, compared to $51.49 in the third quarter before the flooding," said Fang Zhang, storage analyst at IHS. "The ASP will not return to pre flood levels in the short term and will stay at elevated levels throughout 2012 and 2013, helping the HDD industry make up for some of the losses following the disaster."
Among the manufacturers, Seagate had the largest share of revenue at 46%, followed by Western Digital with 32%.
