Volume I · Issue 04 · Apr 2026 · Nicosia

The price of memory is now a matter of European policy.

In eighteen months, a 16 GB DDR5 module in the EU has risen from €94 to 414. Public tenders signed today are being delivered against entirely different markets. We propose a standardised European IT Hardware Price Index to make that volatility visible — and contractually manageable.

DDR5 16GB · 24-month spot
+152% YoY
414/module
DDR4 16GB
206 +154%
DDR5 32GB
824
DDR5 16GB · YoY
+152%
EU spot, Apr 2026
AI GPU · YoY
+93%
Datacentre H-class
Server CPU · YoY
+28%
32-core EPYC/Xeon
NVMe 2TB · YoY
+65%
Enterprise PCIe 4.0
§ 01 — Component snapshot

Today's reference prices

All series →
ComponentPriceYoY
RAM — DDR5 16GB414+340%
RAM — DDR4 16GB206+348%
RAM — DDR5 32GB824+348%
Enterprise NVMe 2TB412+65%
Server CPU (32-core)3,850+28%
AI GPU (H-class)38,500+93%
§ 02 — The case

Why a benchmark, and why now.

AI infrastructure demand, geopolitical disruption, and rigid procurement frameworks have collided. The result: bidders quoting prices they cannot honour six months later.

01
Volatility is structural
DDR5 modules have moved by more than 20% in single quarters across 2025.
02
Tenders carry hidden risk
Suppliers price in worst-case buffers, inflating public spending.
03
Participation declines
SMEs withdraw from frameworks they cannot underwrite.
04
No common reference exists
Eurostat PPI lacks granularity; private indexes are paywalled.
§ 03 — Next

A practical instrument, ready for EU consultation.

Read the full submission to the Deputy Ministry of Research, Innovation & Digital Policy.