Facing sharp jumps in memory chip prices, Xiaomi expects higher production costs to soon translate into more expensive smartphones.
Xiaomi has cautioned that consumers should expect higher smartphone prices in the coming year as the global cost of memory chips continues to spike, putting significant pressure on the company’s hardware margins. President Lu Weibing said the cost surge is set to intensify in 2026, warning that price hikes may become unavoidable for many models.
Lu noted that while Xiaomi will try to absorb part of the increase, rising component prices are too steep to offset fully. “Some of the pressure may have to be addressed through price hikes, but price increases alone won’t be enough to digest it,” he said during the company’s third quarter earnings call.
The warning follows consumer criticism over the pricing of the new Redmi K90, which Lu previously attributed to sharply higher memory costs. Despite these headwinds, Xiaomi shipped 43.3 million smartphones globally in the September quarter, up 0.5 percent year-on-year and maintaining its position as the world’s third-largest smartphone maker with a 13.6 percent market share.
Total revenue rose 22.3 percent to 113.1 billion yuan, slightly below analyst expectations, while adjusted net profit surged 80.9 percent to 11.3 billion yuan. Xiaomi’s new growth engines—electric vehicles, AI and emerging businesses—contributed a quarter of total revenue. Its EV arm reported 28.3 billion yuan in quarterly revenue and turned an operating profit of 700 million yuan for the first time.
Shares of Xiaomi closed 2.81 percent lower in Hong Kong but remain up more than 18 percent this year.
