Apple Price Hike Sparks Global Tech Sell-Off, SK Hynix & Samsung Stocks Fell
· Free Press Journal
Apple's decision to sharply increase prices for its MacBook and iPad lineup has triggered a broad sell-off across global technology stocks, rattling investor sentiment and spilling over into the cryptocurrency market amid growing concerns over the impact of rising semiconductor costs on consumer demand.
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The market downturn was sparked after Apple raised prices across its Mac and iPad product lines by 20-42 per cent globally, including in India, citing an unprecedented surge in memory chip prices driven by booming demand from artificial intelligence (AI) data centres. The move heightened fears that higher device prices could weaken consumer demand and slow the memory chip rally that has fuelled much of the AI-driven technology boom.
Microsoft Hikes Xbox Prices Globally For The Third Time In Two Years; 2TB Model DiscontinuedTechnology stocks across Asia came under heavy pressure following the announcement. South Korean memory chip giants SK Hynix and Samsung Electronics both fell more than 8 per cent, while Japan's Kioxia Holdings dropped as much as 12 per cent.
According to The Wall Street Journal, the MSCI Asia Pacific Information Technology Index declined 6.4 per cent, while Nasdaq 100 futures slipped 1.5 per cent. South Korean regulators were also forced to halt trading for the second time in a week after investors rushed to exit memory chip stocks.
Investor sentiment weakened further following a report by The New York Times that OpenAI may delay its planned initial public offering as it seeks a $1 trillion valuation, adding to uncertainty surrounding the AI sector.
Apple's revised pricing reflects the mounting pressure on the global electronics supply chain. In India, the starting price of the 14-inch MacBook Pro powered by the M5 Pro chip has increased by around 20 per cent to Rs 2,99,900 from its launch price of Rs 2,49,900. Meanwhile, the base 13-inch iPad Air now costs Rs 1,19,900, marking a 41.22 per cent increase from its earlier price of Rs 84,900.
Anthropic Accuses Alibaba Of Large-Scale AI Theft, Claims Chinese Giant Used Almost 25,000 Fraudulent Accounts To Generate 28.8 Million Exchanges With ClaudeIn a statement, Apple said the consumer electronics industry is facing an unprecedented cost challenge due to soaring demand for memory and storage components from AI infrastructure.
"The rapid expansion of AI data centres has created an extraordinary surge in demand for memory and storage. We have never seen a component price increase this much, this quickly. We have shielded our customers from these increases so far, but we have now reached a point where we need to begin raising prices on a number of products, including today's increases for iPad and Mac. We know this is not welcome news, and we are working tirelessly to find solutions," the statement said.