Chinese smartphone makers Vivo, Oppo raise prices as memory costs surge
Unable to absorb rising memory-chip prices, popular handset makers are passing on the costs to consumers
Chinese smartphone maker Vivo on Monday said it will increase handset prices, citing surging semiconductor and memory costs, joining peers such as Oppo and Honor.
Vivo, along with its sub-brand iQOO, will adjust prices from Wednesday, though the scale has not yet been disclosed. The move came in response to the “continued sharp rise in global semiconductor and memory costs”, the company said.
Last week, Oppo said it would adjust prices, with the new pricing taking effect on Monday.
“We understand why our peers are raising prices – everyone is under pressure, and it’s painful for all of us to absorb the costs,” Lu Weibing, president of Xiaomi’s smartphone business, wrote on Weibo on Monday, when asked by followers whether the company would raise prices of the flagship K-series models.
Last week, Honor unveiled its latest flagship model, the Magic V6, with the top-end version priced about 1,000 yuan (US$145) higher than its predecessor. Several other Honor models were also likely to see price increases later this month, according to industry sources.
Phone makers are under mounting margin pressure amid a shortage of memory chips and surging demand from artificial intelligence servers, pushing prices sharply higher in recent months. Meanwhile, chipmakers have been unable to expand production quickly, while upstream manufacturing costs, including metals and energy, have also been climbing amid geopolitical risks.