Apple, the world’s most valuable consumer electronics company, is raising prices for iPads and MacBooks due to surging memory and storage costs driven by the AI data centre boom. This move comes as a reality check for investors who were expecting the AI rally to continue.
Impact on Markets
The price increase is a result of Apple’s inability to absorb the rising costs of memory and storage. Micron’s recent results showed a significant increase in demand for its memory chips, with customers locking in $22 billion of supply. This shift in the market has led to tightening markets and rising pricing power.
The news has also affected Asian markets, with South Korea’s KOSPI experiencing an 8% drop on the day and a 9% drop for the week. The US dollar has risen, with the Japanese yen struggling near a 40-year low amid mounting intervention jitters.
Global Economic Trends
The easing of oil prices has offered some relief, but not enough to offset the impact of the chip shortage. The US inflation rate has broken above 4% for the first time in three years, keeping an interest rate increase from the Federal Reserve firmly on the table.
Original reporting: Appleton, WI News Feed (HLL/CB) — read the source article.
