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Apple warns of ‘unprecedented’ rise in memory chip prices

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Cite

Apple warns of ‘unprecedented’ rise in memory chip prices. (2026, November 3). The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2026/nov/02/apple-third-quarter-revenue-earnings

Dated from the outlet's own feed. Check the original for its byline.

The Guardian · collected 2026-11-03 · by Staff and agencies

Quick Summary

Apple has warned of an "unprecedented" rise in memory chip prices, which will impact profit margins according to a conference call led by new CEO John Ternus. The company reported stronger-than-expected revenue of $114.5 billion for the fiscal third quarter, up 12% year-over-year, despite facing challenges from increased costs and competition with data centers for chip supplies. Apple's shares fell 2.75% in after-hours trading due to concerns about higher memory prices affecting profit margins, although analysts noted that strong iPhone sales and Chinese market growth cushioned the impact.
Written by AI on 2026-11-03, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).

AI analysis

Story summary

Apple’s new CEO, John Ternus, warned on a conference call on November 3, 2026, of an "unprecedented" rise in memory chip prices, predicting that costs would be even higher in the fourth quarter compared to previous months. This surge has been driven by increased demand from AI data centers, leading to shortages and price hikes for memory chips across the industry. As a result, Apple’s shares fell in after-hours trading due to concerns about reduced profit margins. To counteract rising costs, Apple had previously raised prices on its iPad and MacBook products in June and September. Ben Barringer, head of technology research at Quilter Cheviot, described Apple's financial results as "OK, if on the disappointing side," noting that revenues were up 12%, driven primarily by iPhone sales and strong Mac Mini sales.

Written for “Apple Memory Chip Price Warning” on 2026-11-03, grounded in this article and the 0 other(s) covering the same event.
Why this leaning score
This article does not take a side on a contested political question, so it has no leaning score. That is an answer rather than a gap: a match report or a rescue can be warmly or critically written without being left or right, and scoring it anyway is how approval of a subject gets recorded as a political position.
No political leaning scored for article 125217 · logged 2026-11-03

Story

📰 Apple Memory Chip Price Warning
Economy/Business · 1 article(s) covering the same event.

Compared with similar articles

This article reads unscored and hedges 12% of its claims. Each row says how that neighbour differs.
Semafor
Hedges 0 of 4 claims Outlet record 59/100
“While both articles discuss Apple's financial situation related to memory chip prices under CEO Ternus, they describe different aspects of a broader issue and are not reporting on the exact same incident.”
How this article was measured signals, leaning charts, publisher record, byline, topics and claims

Signals How these are calculated →

Claims extracted
16
sentences that state something as happening or true
Uncertain
12%
2 of 16 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")
Leaning
not political
takes no side on a contested political question
Publisher signals
66/100
The Guardian's corrections and hedging, across everything collected from it. Not a measure of accuracy.
Outlets on this story
1
Economy/Business
Same framing elsewhere
1
articles that frame the event the way this one does
Analyzed 2026-11-03 · how these are computed

How this is being covered How these are calculated →

Article leaning vs. publisher reliability
Source leaning vs. consistency

Publisher

The Guardian · 2889 article(s) · 6 correction(s) detected
Running correction rate · 6 correction(s)

Who wrote this

No reporter is named on this article, beyond the feed's “Staff and agencies”.

Topics

Alphabet Apple China iPad iPhone

Subjects

Apple ORG · 11× Alphabet ORG · 2× China GPE · 2× Ternus ORG · 2× Amazon ORG · 1× Ben Barringer PERSON · 1× Intel ORG · 1× Jacob Bourne PERSON · 1× John Ternus PERSON · 1× Quilter Cheviot ORG · 1×

Narrative

The iPhone maker’s shares fell in after-hours trading after it told investors that the higher prices will eat into its profit margins. “What we’re seeing with memory pricing right now is unprecedented,” John Ternus, Apple’s new CEO, told a conference call on Monday, predicting that memory costs in the fourth quarter of this year would be even higher than in the previous three months.
framing: assertive · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-11-03
🔮 The iPhone maker’s shares fell in after-hours trading after it told investors that the higher prices will eat into its profit margins. “What we’re seeing with memory pricing right now is unprecedented,” John Ternus, Apple’s new CEO, told a conference call on Monday, predicting that memory costs in the fourth quarter of this year would be even higher than in the previous three months.
2026-11-03 · The Guardian
Apple warns of ‘unprecedented’ rise in memory chip prices · assertive framing

Claims (16 extracted, 2 hedged)

Apple has warned of an “unprecedented” rise in memory chip prices, as it battles with datacentres to lay its hands on supplies. asserted
it → warn → supplies
The iPhone maker’s shares fell in after-hours trading after it told investors that the higher prices will eat into its profit margins. “What we’re seeing with memory pricing right now is unprecedented,” John Ternus, Apple’s new CEO, told a conference call on Monday, predicting that memory costs in the fourth quarter of this year would be even higher than in the previous three months. asserted
costs → fall → months
The tech industry has been gripped by “RAMageddon” for months, as demand for memory chips from AI datacentres has surged, driving up prices. asserted
demand → grip → prices
Ternus said Apple’s decision to raise iPad and MacBook prices in June, followed by iPhone prices in September, had “provided some offset” for the company. asserted
decision → say → company
Ben Barringer, the head of technology research at Quilter Cheviot, said Apple’s results were “OK, if on the disappointing side”. asserted
results → say → side
“Revenues were up 12%, driven primarily by iPhone sales and strong sales of Mac Mini, which users can use to apply agentic AI. asserted
users → drive → AI
China growth was robust which is pleasing to see, while iPad and wearables disappointed with services growing but lower than the group average at 10%,” he added. asserted
he → see → %
“There appears to be a lot of interest in the iPhone Duo, but it is early days yet with the product not yet on full release, but it is hoped that can help drive the next leg of Apple’s product innovation.” asserted
that → appear → innovation
Apple posted stronger-than-expected revenue in the fiscal third quarter, giving Ternus an upbeat start to his tenure, which began in September. asserted
which → post → September
The solid results bucked a downward trend for tech companies this quarter, as companies including Alphabet, Amazon and Intel had disappointing quarterly results. asserted
companies → buck → results
Jacob Bourne, an Emarketer analyst, said record iPhone revenue and strong growth in China demonstrated the resilience of Apple’s business. asserted
revenue → say → business
Apple earned $30.71bn (£22.89bn), or $2.10 a share, in the July-September period, up 12% from $27.47bn, or $1.85 a share, in the equivalent period a year earlier. asserted
Apple → earn → period
Apple said its earnings included five cents a share from tariff refunds. asserted
earnings → say → refunds
Revenue rose 12% to $114.5bn from $102.5bn. asserted
Revenue → rise → 102.5bn
Analysts, on average, were expecting earnings of $1.99 a share on revenue of $113.4bn, according to a poll by FactSet. uncertain
Analysts → expect → FactSet
While its rivals are facing investor uncertainty over huge investments in artificial intelligence, Bourne said Apple’s “tepid approach” to AI infrastructure spending helped preserve its cashflow – while partnerships with companies such as Alphabet could help the iPhone maker strengthen its AI capabilities without taking on the same financial risks as its peers. uncertain
maker → face → peers
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