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BENGALURU: Apple raised prices on its existing iPhone lineup in India by as much as 41% within hours of unveiling newer models, bucking its usual practice of discounting older variants \u200band marking one of the steepest hikes in any market where it \u200bhas repriced this year.<\/strong><\/p>\n While Apple also raised prices in the U.S. \u2060late Wednesday, those increases ranged from 10% to 21%. The hikes followed Apple\u2019s September \u200bevent, dubbed \u2018Surprise and Shine,\u2019 where new Chief Executive John Ternus unveiled Apple\u2019s first foldable phone, \u200bthe iPhone Duo.<\/span><\/p>\n Apple had previously announced plans to raise iPhone prices globally, citing increasing memory and storage chip costs. A surge in AI-driven demand for data centers has forced consumer electronics companies \u200binto a fierce competition for dwindling supplies of the key components, driving up \u200bcosts.<\/span><\/p>\n India is one of Apple\u2019s fastest-growing markets and now also assembles a large share of the \u200ciPhones \u2060it sells globally.<\/span><\/p>\n That hasn\u2019t insulated Indian buyers from price increases: import duties for components and an 18% goods and services tax still push iPhone prices in India well above U.S. levels.<\/span><\/p>\n The India price for the lower storage variant of the iPhone \u200b17 rose nearly 21% \u200bto 99,900 Indian \u2060rupees ($1,048), while the iPhone Air recorded the sharpest jump in the lineup at a 41% increase to 224,900 Indian rupees ($2,359) for \u200bits one terabyte variant.<\/span><\/p>\n In comparison, the equivalent U.S. variants rose \u200bnearly 13% \u2060to $899 for the base iPhone 17, and 21% to $1,699 for the iPhone Air 1 TB.<\/span><\/p>\n