Apple may raise prices of the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max, which it will unveil on Sept. 9, by up to 20 percent, a forecast showed. A key factor is a sharp rise in memory prices, a core smartphone component, as memory supply shortages deepen due to the expansion of AI data centres.

Cryptopolitan, a blockchain media outlet, reported on Thursday that market research firm TrendForce forecast Apple could move to a major price increase for the first time in about 2 years due to higher memory costs for the iPhone 18 Pro models.

The biggest burden is memory prices. TrendForce estimated that in the third quarter of 2026, memory costs for the 256GB iPhone 18 Pro model would rise by about 400 percent from the same period a year earlier.

The analysis said it would be difficult to fully offset the rise in memory costs even if Apple succeeds in cutting costs in other components. Total component costs for the 256GB Pro model were also estimated to have risen by about 38 percent year on year.

TrendForce said Apple could absorb part of the cost increase, but it would be difficult to cover the sharply higher component costs entirely by shrinking margins.

Forecasts for the actual price increase have also been adjusted. TrendForce expected in June that the iPhone 18 Pro price would rise by 14 to 18 percent, but this time it presented a range of 10 to 20 percent. Apple's official prices are expected to be confirmed at the new product launch event on Sept. 9.

The possibility of price increases does not apply only to Pro models. TrendForce forecast that the standard iPhone 18, expected to launch in the first quarter of 2027, could also be affected by price increases of about 10 to 20 percent. It cited higher costs for memory and storage devices as making it difficult for both premium and standard models to avoid cost pressure.

The product expected to have the highest price among the new lineup is Apple's first foldable iPhone. The iPhone 18 Fold may use the brand name "iPhone Ultra" during its launch process, and its starting price is expected to be $2,099 to $2,299, or about 2.84 million to 3.11 million won.

For the top storage-capacity model, the price could exceed $3,000, or about 4.06 million won. TrendForce analysed that Apple could use this price range as a benchmark for future generations of foldable iPhones.

Initial supply of the foldable iPhone is likely to be limited. TrendForce expected foldable phones to account for about 2 percent of the global smartphone market in 2026. The iPhone 18 Fold could also face limited initial production and inventory, raising the possibility that Apple will take a conservative approach to supply scale even as it introduces a new form factor.

The backdrop to rising memory prices also includes rapid growth in the AI industry. JP Morgan Global Research suggested that DRAM prices could rise by more than 400 percent in 2026. It said large cloud operators are locking up memory supply through long-term contracts, leaving consumer device makers such as smartphones and PCs to compete for the remaining volume.

Rising memory prices are already affecting Apple product prices. Apple has cited higher memory and storage costs as a key reason when it raised prices for iPads and MacBooks this year.

Moves to diversify supply chains are also emerging. Apple is reported to be considering sourcing DRAM from China's ChangXin Memory Technologies (CXMT) to expand its memory supply base beyond Samsung Electronics, SK Hynix and Micron.

Rising hardware costs are putting pressure not only on Apple but also on other companies. Amazon also raised the price of its AI speaker Echo Dot by 60 percent to $79.99 from $49.99, citing higher memory component costs.

Apple is expected to pursue a strategy of expanding higher-margin services rather than solving cost pressures only through product price increases. TrendForce analysed that Apple could increase the profit contribution from cloud services related to Apple Intelligence and software subscription businesses to defend overall profitability.

Ultimately, the price list for the iPhone 18 series, due to be unveiled on Sept. 9, is expected to serve as an indicator of how much the global surge in memory prices is affecting the premium smartphone market. How much Apple passes rising component costs on to consumer prices is also expected to affect pricing strategies in the premium smartphone market.