GPU prices are finally dropping for the first time in over a year.GPU cards from both Nvidia and AMD, the main GPU manufacturers, have been marked up by scalpers and retailers by up to four times the manufacturer suggested retail price (MSRP) since the beginning of 2020 due to profitability of mining cryptocurrency.The GPU or graphics processing unit, are the central piece of hardware in cryptocurrency farms which mine for cryptocurrency such as Etherium and Tether.Crypto-famers around the world, especially in China, have bought up GPUs in bulk orders to build large scale farms for years.This has accelerated exponentially in the last 18 months due to the booming prices of cryptocurrency.The bulk orders have caused a crisis of shortage within the GPU industry.Both AMD and Nvidia have been heavily criticized by consumers who are unable to buy the GPUs for other purposes like rendering video, VFX animation, and gaming.
But investigations by tech journalists in the past week have shown that GPU prices in China and the second hand market in Asia have dropped.
From four times the MSRP, GPUs are now selling at just twice the MSRP according to the latest statistics .Chinese crackdown Much of this is due to a recent crackdown by the Chinese government which has not only caused a dip in the crypto market but a mass sell-off of equipment by GPU farms in China who are uncertain about their future.Provincial governments in China have implemented bans on crypto mining due to the extreme pressure mining had on the provinces’ electric infrastructure.(Crypto farms demand a lot of electricity to run the GPUs at full tilt to make a profit) The central Chinese government have also pressured major corporations including AliPay and other financial services to stop providing crypto-related service.
It is unclear why the CCP has chosen to crackdown on crypto currency now.Many have suggested that the move was done to clean house ahead of the CCP’s one hundredth anniversary on July 1.But others worry that the move could be more permanent which would dampen enthusiasm for cryptocurrency around the world.America action Last month, the United States’ Internal Revenue Service added to the waning price of cryptocurrency by saying that all crypto transactions were taxable.
In a ruling made by the IRS , the body declared that not only was the buying of cryptocurrency taxable, the exchange of one form of cryptocurrency to another was also taxable as well.If that wasn’t enough, the IRS also announced that was investigating whether or not cryptocurrency exchanges and holding would be liable to capital gains tax the same way gains made on the stock exchange were taxed.Good news for GPU buyers These two moves by the United States and China means good news for people who have put off buying GPUs for personal use because of the price.Analysts at major tech publications say that if current trends hold, GPUs will likely sell for close to the MSRP by the year’s end..
