Pressure mounts as storage chip prices rise: Reports say Apple has accepted a 100% price increase for Kioxia flash memory, with prices renegotiated every quarter

@ponyoonthebeach revealed yesterday that due to the tight supply and rising prices of storage chips, Apple has been forced to agree to the contract terms of the Japanese flash memory giant Kioxia.

Kioxia has decided to double the unit price for its NAND flash memory purchases starting from the first quarter of this year (January to March), and will adjust prices each quarter thereafter based on market conditions, meaning that prices may continue to fluctuate in the future.

If the rumors are true, even if Apple secures supply in the short term through contracts, it will still find it difficult to completely avoid the cost pressure brought about by the continued rise in NAND prices.

According to IT Home, the iPhone 17 series has introduced as many as five DRAM and NAND suppliers to enhance supply chain resilience, but in the current market environment, it may still be difficult to fully avoid the impact of price increases.

Tight supply and rising prices in the memory market have become an industry-wide issue that cannot be easily resolved by a single manufacturer.

Ming-Chi Kuo stated that under cost pressure, Apple might need to absorb some of the price increases during market turbulence to maintain its reputation and product competitiveness. He also pointed out that Apple's services business could provide a buffer against hardware cost fluctuations.