Apple Signals Continued Memory Cost Increases, Micron Stock Surges Over 22% in Two Days
Claire Weston
Apple CEO Tim Cook confirmed the company expects to pay higher memory costs in the September quarter, while Amazon raised its 2026 capex guide to $220 billion. Micron surged over 22% in two sessions as the market repriced memory demand resilience and continued AI infrastructure expansion.
What did Apple say, and why did it move Micron this much?
Cook said on the earnings call: "In the September quarter, we expect to pay higher memory costs." This means → Apple, one of the world's largest memory buyers, directly confirmed that demand remains firm and prices are still rising.
Micron had already jumped roughly 19% the prior session. It added another 3.4% in Friday pre-market to $904, bringing the two-day gain past 22%.
In plain terms = when Apple itself says "we'll spend more on memory," it stamps the industry's pricing trend with the biggest customer's seal of approval.
How real is the China-substitute threat?
Cook only vaguely mentioned that more memory suppliers could enter the market. He did not say Apple plans to source Chinese-made memory chips for its devices.
The Wall Street Journal previously reported that Apple lobbied the Trump administration for permission to use Chinese-made memory in devices sold outside the U.S. This means → Apple is exploring Chinese suppliers, but the effort remains at the policy-lobbying stage — nothing has materialized.
The threat of Chinese memory makers entering Apple's supply chain at scale had weighed on Micron's stock, but in the near term that risk still looks distant.
Amazon raised capex — what does that have to do with memory?
Amazon on Thursday lifted its 2026 full-year capex guide from $200 billion to $220 billion, a 10% increase.
This reflects an unbroken pace of AI infrastructure expansion — data-center servers, networking gear, and the rest. In plain terms = building data centers means installing vast numbers of servers, and every server needs memory chips. An extra $20 billion in infrastructure spending pulls memory demand up with it.
Two signals stacking: Apple confirms consumer-side memory price increases + Amazon confirms AI-side capex acceleration → both demand lanes are strengthening at the same time.
Is Micron expensive now? What is the market watching next?
Per FactSet, Wall Street expects Micron's earnings to grow for at least the next three years. The stock's forward P/E — the price relative to expected future profit — sits at under 6×.
In plain terms = by Wall Street's profit forecasts, Micron's current price relative to what it is expected to earn still looks cheap.
The key verification points ahead: how long memory price increases can last + when the China-substitute threat moves from lobbying to actual orders. The direction of these two variables will determine whether Micron's valuation recovery continues.
Content is for reference only, not financial advice.