Report: GPU shipments see biggest drop since 2009 recession

Graphics card shipments fell off a cliff in the third quarter of this year.

That’s according to data from Jon Peddie Research, which who that GPU shipments clocked in at 75.5 million during Q3 2022.

That’s a drop of 10.3 per cent quarter-on-quarter, and a massive 25.1 per cent year-on-year, the biggest drop since the 2009 recession.

This is due to a combination of China’s aggressive lockdown policies to stave off COVID, as well as a reduction in crypto mining – which used graphics cards – among other reasons.

AMD saw the biggest losses – its GPU shipments almost halved sequentially, clocking in at a 47.6 per cent drop – while Nvidia took a 19.7 per cent hit. Intel, meanwhile, saw its GPU business increase by 4.7 per cent due to the fact it has started selling unintegrated graphics cards.

“The third quarter is usually the high point of the year for the GPU and PC suppliers, and even though the suppliers had guided down in Q2, the results came much below their expectations,” Peddie said.

“All the companies gave various and sometimes similar reasons for the downturn: the shutdown of crypto mining, headwinds from China’s zero-tolerance rules and rolling shutdowns, sanctions by the US, user situation from the purchasing run-up during Covid, the Osborne effect on AMD while gamers wait for the new AIBs, inflation and the higher prices of AIBs, overhang inventory run-down, and a bad moon out tonight.

“Generally, the feeling is Q4 shipments will be down, but ASPs will be up, supply will be fine, and everyone will have a happy holiday.”