The Globe and Mail reports in its Thursday edition that Apple plans to raise prices on its products to offset increasing memory and storage chip costs, chief executive officer Tim Cook told the Wall Street Journal. A Reuters dispatch to The Globe says the surge in AI-driven demand for data centres has forced consumer electronics companies into a fierce competition for dwindling supplies of the key components, driving prices sharply higher. Groups representing autoreturn makers, retailers, electronic companies and others had warned earlier this month that the increasing demand for memory chips could lead to dramatic price hikes in U.S. consumer goods and disrupt supply chains. "Unfortunately, price increases are unavoidable," Mr. Cook told WSJ. "We're doing our best to mitigate the huge increases that are being passed to us, and we've been trying to shield our customers from the increases, but the situation has become unsustainable." Mr. Cook, who will hand over the reins to John Ternus in September, did not disclose when or how much prices might rise, nor which products could be affected. Apple is reportedly on track to release its first foldable iPhone in September, alongside the iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max.