Apple Shares Tumble Nearly 10% Amid Supply Chain Pressures

Apple's stock plummeted nearly 10% in early trading on Friday after the company issued a weaker-than-expected revenue forecast, signaling that global supply chain constraints linked to the artificial intelligence boom are affecting its ability to meet customer demand.

The iPhone maker attributed its cautious outlook to mounting shortages of key components, including semiconductors and memory chips needed to power AI data centers. Apple's Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook described the supply challenges as 'severe' and acknowledged that the company had limited flexibility to overcome them.

Cook noted that the supply constraints have become 'very significant,' and that Apple had few remaining options to offset their impact. The company forecast revenue growth of between 9% and 11% for the current quarter, below Wall Street expectations of around 12%. This outlook overshadowed healthy demand for Apple's iPhone and Mac product lines.

Analysts pointed out that even at Apple's scale, they are saying they are out all supply chain flexibility, it's really bad for everyone,' said Ben Bajarin, Chief Executive Officer of technology consultancy Creative Strategies. The industry is bracing for slower growth in Apple's high-margin services business, which has become an increasingly important source of revenue and profitability for the company.

Apple's shares had gained 22.7% since the start of the year, reflecting strong investor optimism around the company's long-term growth prospects. However, the latest earnings outlook suggests that even one of the world's most influential technology companies is not immune to supply chain disruptions fueled by the rapid expansion of AI infrastructure.