Apple shares plunge after increasing prices in face of memory shortages

Yahoo Finance · 2026-06-26

Apple shares plunge after increasing prices in face of memory shortages Henry Saker-Clark, Press Association Deputy Business Editor Fri, 26 June 2026 at 6:04 am GMT-4 2 min read AAPL Shares in Apple tumbled at their fastest rate for more than a year after the tech giant said it was hiking prices in response to soaring memory and storage costs. The slump in value knocked stocks across the tech sector and weighed on early trading in Asia on Friday morning. The Silicon Valley firm saw its shares drop by 6.1% overnight, wiping the equivalent of roughly 270 billion US dollars (£204 billion) off its market value. It represented the company's largest decline in its share over a single day since April 2025. Traders sold off the stock after the company said it would increase prices across several of its MacBook and iPad models. It marked the first formal move by Apple to pass increases in memory and storage costs onto its customers. In a statement, the company said: "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 have never seen a component price increase this much, this quickly." Intense competition across the tech sector linked to the AI boom has resulted in short supply of memory as producers prioritise major AI chipmakers such as Nvidia. The shortage of supply has led to higher costs as tech firms seek to secure memory. Apple increased the price of a MacBook Air with 512 gigabytes of storage to 1,299 dollars (£982) from 1,099 dollars (£831). Meanwhile, an iPad Air with 128 gigabytes of storage has gone up to 749 dollars (£566) from 599 dollars (£453). RSM UK's technology senior analyst James Bull said: "Apple's price increases are a visible sign of something that has been building for some time. "The four largest US technology companies are forecast to spend 725 billion dollars on data centres and AI equipment in 2026 alone. "That level of demand for memory chips has created a shortage the supply chain cannot keep pace with." The slump in Apple shares and concerns over memory supply knocked stocks across the tech sector, weighing on global equity markets on Friday morning. Ipek Ozkardeskaya, senior analyst at Swissquote, said other global technology firms have seen their value hit. She said: "Other device makers like Dell, HP and Lenovo lost between 4% and 5%, while Samsung is down by more than 8% today, on worries that the massive rise in chip prices will eventually hit a wall. "As such, the Korean Kospi index is having one of those days: an 8% fall at the index level, a halted trading session and unbelievably high volatility. "Over in Japan, the Nikkei is down by more than 3% on the back of souring tech sentiment."

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After Apple raised prices on some MacBook and iPad models citing a sharp rise in memory and storage costs, AAPL shares plunged 6.1% in a single day, wiping out about $270 billion in market capitalization. The background includes a surge in memory demand from the AI boom and manufacturers prioritizing supply allocation (e.g., giving priority to AI chip makers such as Nvidia). As a result, DRAM and NAND manufacturers are expected to see profit improvement from rising prices, while a headwind is emerging from weaker consumer device demand and deteriorating investor sentiment across tech stocks. In Asian markets such as the Kospi and Nikkei, tech-focused sell-offs and trading halts have occurred, making short-term volatility inevitably wider.

상승 영향

Memory (DRAM/NAND manufacturers) — Surging AI-driven demand has tightened memory supply and pushed up prices, which should immediately improve revenues and margins for DRAM and NAND manufacturers.
AI chips/Data center equipment — Concentrated demand for AI servers and accelerators steadily increases demand for AI chip makers like Nvidia and for data center equipment, benefiting those vendors.
Semiconductor equipment manufacturers — Large-scale data center and AI equipment investments necessitate capacity expansion, boosting orders and sales for semiconductor equipment suppliers.

하락 영향

Apple (AAPL)/Consumer devices — Price increases raise the likelihood of demand slowdown, which can materially worsen Apple’s near-term sales and damage brand trust.
PC & Tablet manufacturers (Dell, HP, Len — Rising component costs and pass-through of price increases squeeze margins, and weaker consumer demand hurts their financial results.
Global technology sector & stock markets — The Apple shock and memory supply concerns undermine investor sentiment across tech stocks, increasing index volatility and downward pressure.

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