Stock market: European tech stocks lose ground amid rising chip prices; down 2.4%
There is also the possibility that OpenAI’s IPO may be postponed. Apple announces price rises across most of its product ranges
Selling pressure in the European technology sector, with St down 2.4% to 65 euros on Piazza Affari (-1.1%), in a session weighed down by fears that the rise in memory chip prices – driven by AI and data centres – could ultimately affect demand. The trend is spreading to the rest of the sector: in Frankfurt, Infineon is down 2.6% to €79.89, whilst in Amsterdam, ASM is down 2.5% to €966 and BE Semiconductor is down 1.7% to €284. The Stoxx Europe 600 Technology index fell by around 1% overall. Also weighing on the market are rumours reported yesterday by the New York Times, suggesting that OpenAI might postpone its much-anticipated IPO until next year. Shares in SoftBank – one of the main investors in Sam Altman’s company – fell by over 12% in Tokyo (Nikkei -4.1%) following the news.
Price rises for Apple
The other catalyst for sales comes from the United States, where Apple announced price rises yesterday across several product lines, fuelling fears that the shortage of memory and storage could shift from being a boon for chip manufacturers to a drag on the entire supply chain. In Asia, the backlash was immediate, whilst Wall Street has begun to reassess the notion that the semiconductor rally is automatically positive for the entire AI sector. Across the Atlantic, in fact, the Big Tech firms “have recently been struggling from a technical perspective due to clearly excessive valuations and the enormous concentration of capital on a few stocks, which are incomparable to the rest of the financial market”, reflects David Pascucci of XTB.
Banca Akros reports that Apple is set to raise prices “across most of its product ranges”, citing “high prices and a shortage of memory and storage chips” as the reason. Analysts also point out that as early as April, the company’s management had indicated that the chip shortage would likely continue for “several months” and would worsen over the course of the year. The most sensitive issue concerns the possible extension of price rises to the iPhone as well. According to Banca Akros, in fact, “the repricing could also extend to the iPhone product line, with the new range due to be launched in September and the new high-end models likely to be priced higher than previous generations”. The news therefore has “a negative impact on the entire supply chain due to the reduction in product volumes”. Within Banca Akros’s coverage, the impact is estimated to be most negative for Technoprobe (-2.9% to €33.7), due to the business’s strong link to volumes, whilst a “more neutral” effect is indicated for St, as its exposure to Apple is linked primarily to the iPhone range.
Intermonte points out that Apple is “ST’s main customer, accounting for an estimated 17% of its business in 2025” and that, in 2026, the Personal Electronics segment is expected to grow by around 4 per cent, thanks to an increase of around 10 per cent in business with Apple, against a decline of around 10 per cent in the non-Apple segment. The key issue, however, remains the same: “we believe the news is negative for overall volumes, as price increases could dampen demand, particularly for non-iPhone products”, the analysts note.
