The focus in the global DRAM market is shifting from personal computers to mobile devices as demand rises for smartphones and tablets, according to recent industry figures.

Reflecting this trend, shipments of mobile DRAM exceeded those of PC DRAM in the first quarter of the year, global research firm DRAMeXchange said. It marked the second time in three quarters since mobile DRAM shipments first outstripped PC DRAM’s in the third quarter of 2013.

“The global shipment of 2 GB DRAM rose 29 percent to 5.3 billion units in the first quarter of this year, compared to the 4.1 billion units that were shipped in the same period last year,” DRAMeXchange said.

Of the total, mobile DRAM shipments stood at 1.7 billion units, beating the 1.6 billion units of PC DRAM.

While the shipments of mobile DRAM have gradually risen to 32 percent in 2013 from 11 percent in 2010, PC DRAM shipments fell to 33 percent from 62 percent during the same period. DRAMeXchange predicted that the former would hit 36 percent this year, while the latter would further decline to 30 percent.

The shift was mostly on account of worldwide semiconductor manufacturers transitioning their assembly lines from PC DRAM to mobile DRAM in line with the growing demand for smart devices, industry watchers said.

Samsung Electronics saw a jump in mobile DRAM from 17 percent in 2010 to 39 percent in 2013. SK hynix likewise saw an increase from 11 percent to 26 percent during the period.

Market analysts expect mobile DRAM to continue to prevail in the long term. However, the shift in production toward mobile DRAM will lead to a supply shortage of PC DRAM, experts say.

“With the assembly lines shifting to mobile DRAM to cope with a high demand for smartphones in the second half, the price of PC DRAM will rise from the third quarter of this year,” said Jin Sung-hye, an analyst at KTB Investment & Securities.

By Shin Ji-hye (shinjh@heraldcorp.com)