Apple shares tumble by nearly 10% amid AI data centre boom

Apple shares have fallen by nearly 10% after forecasts showed the technology giant was struggling to secure enough components.

According to Reuters, the drop could mark the stock’s worst day since the pandemic-driven selloff in March 2020, erasing nearly US$500 billion from Apple’s market capitalisation.

Apple’s chief financial officer, Kevan Parekh, said last week that the company was expecting 9-11% revenue growth in the three months to the end of September. The Financial Times reported that this is below Wall Street forecasts of 12% and Apple shares fell as much as 9% on Friday, the largest fall since US President Donald Trump introduced tariffs worldwide last year.

This news would come as a huge blow to the iPhone maker, which won back its crown as the world’s most valuable company just days ago after achieving a $5 trillion market value and overtaking Nvidia.

AI continues to fuel the data centre boom, which is putting great strain on global supply chains to deliver the infrastructure needed to meet demand. Some of the largest technology companies in the world have been purchasing advanced memory chips to power AI-enabled data centres, which has inevitably created shortages and higher prices.

Outgoing Apple CEO Tim Cook called the shortages “very significant” during his final earnings call, Reuters said, adding that Apple had limited options to address them.

His comments come ahead of his move to the executive chairman position, leaving John Ternus to take up the mantle as Apple CEO in September. The wider technology industry is full of anticipation for how Ternus will proceed with the company, particularly as it plans to launch its latest iPhone model at the same time he takes over.

Aside from shares dropping, Apple reported strong performance in the three months to June, with iPhone sales up nearly 22% year-on-year at $54.3 billion and a reported revenue of $109.4bn – both higher than expected.

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