Patna: India’s IT hardware industry is under significant pressure after a sharp rise in the cost of key components such as semiconductors, RAM and SSDs, pushing up manufacturing costs and threatening higher prices for consumer electronics.
Industry representatives say prices of DDR5 RAM and NVMe solid-state drives have increased by as much as 300% over the past six months. The jump has dramatically altered cost structures, with components that previously accounted for around 10–15% of a product’s price now making up as much as 50–55%.
The increase is expected to feed through to retail markets, with mobile phones, laptops, personal computers and servers likely to become more expensive in the coming months as manufacturers pass on higher input costs.
The surge has also begun to disrupt public procurement. According to industry bodies, several government tenders awarded under earlier pricing assumptions are now commercially unviable, leaving some suppliers struggling to meet delivery commitments and facing potential penalties.
Officials within industry associations have urged government intervention, warning that the rapid escalation in costs is placing widespread stress on the supply chain.
Experts attribute the spike to a global shortage of semiconductors, compounded by rising demand for artificial intelligence-related hardware. As companies increasingly prioritise AI infrastructure, availability of standard components has tightened further.
Industry representatives warn the situation may persist for another 10 to 15 months, prompting calls for temporary relief measures and greater flexibility in procurement contracts to prevent further disruption across the sector.
