Shortages of RoHS parts

An article on the website of our sister publication, Purchasing magazine, finds there is a tight supply of RoHS compliant parts, “as manufacturers have not produced enough to meet demand, according to independent distributors.” The article also notes there is a tight supply of non-compliant parts as well, since many component manufacturers have cut back their non-compliant production or stopped it altogether.

In some cases, prices are already rising for non-complaint parts that have become valuable to the exempt industries. Spot prices are up 50 percent for NOR flash chips in 32-, 64-, and 128-bit densities. The uncertainty in the components market is providing boom times for independent distributors that trade in excess and hard-to-find inventory.

Yet even as the market for non-compliant parts tightens, the article also warns that the prices for non-compliant parts will eventually fall drastically as OEMs and contract manufacturers begin to unload their excess storages of leaded parts.