Technologies

RAM Shortage Could Kill Budget Phones: The Latest Predictions at MWC 2026

Skyrocketing memory costs mean bleaker projections than even the worst predictions analysts made before.

The race to build AI infrastructure has gobbled up so much memory that prices have skyrocketed, with analysts predicting that product costs will rise as a result. But the outlook is far worse than anticipated. New reports and forecasts suggest that the RAM shortage could prompt manufacturers of cheaper devices to reduce or even stop production for some time.

Smartphone shipments are expected to drop by 13% through 2026 compared with last year, according to the International Data Corporation. This won’t just be a temporary crisis, but “a tsunami-like shock originating in the memory supply chain, with ripple effects spreading across the entire consumer electronics industry,” Francisco Jeronimo, vice president for Worldwide Client Devices at IDC, had previously said in a statement.

When reached at MWC 2026, Jeronimo predicted that this impact won’t happen immediately. Phone sales will stay pretty static over the first quarter of the year (which is almost over) as distributors buy as much stock as they can, but the shortage will start affecting phone production around the second quarter, between April and June.

Phones are already getting more expensive, as analysts predicted. The Samsung Galaxy S26 and S26 Plus, which both launched with a $100 price hike over their predecessors — though they also bumped the minimum storage to 256GB from 128GB. But the premium segment likely won’t be as affected as lower-cost, higher-volume phones, said Anshel Sag, principal analyst at Moor Insights and Strategy.

“That’s why you’re already seeing the Chinese [phone manufacturers] have to jack up prices already,” Sag said.

With the shortage, RAM prices are spiking, reaching three times last year’s levels, according to a Counterpoint Research report released at the end of February. The cheapest devices, already on thin margins, will likely see their profits evaporate. At that point, it’s not worth selling those phones.

“Some vendors are telling us that they are considering leaving that [budget] segment entirely, because if you sell a phone for $150, and half the cost is memory, where will you make money? There’s no point in selling products, right?” Jeronimo said.

If the cheapest budget segment drops out of the phone industry over the next year, that’s 10% of the global market that will be gone, Jeronimo noted.

The shortage is already affecting plans for the prices of phones set to launch. At MWC 2026, several phones were shown off without finalized prices, like the Unihertz Titan 2 Elite shown off at MWC that is soon being sold on Kickstarter. Before the RAM shortage, the price of an upcoming phone would be set weeks or months in advance of its release to store shelves. Now, it’s too risky to name a price until just before it’s sold. They just might not have enough memory to even supply the first batch of products at the preset price, Jeronimo said, and potentially raise prices thereafter.

As an example, the base Xiaomi 17 recently launched at 999 euros, but Jeronimo predicted that “the price they announced on stage is not the price they [will] see [the phone at]. The price in the store, in many operations, will be 100 euros more than what they said on stage,” he said.

When will the RAM crisis end?

Unlike last year’s tariffs and the financial fluctuations that phone-makers largely absorbed, the RAM shortage is unavoidable — there’s simply a lot less of these components to go around.

“This is not a short-term thing,” Jeronimo said. “You cannot build 1,000 factories in three or four months. [That would] take two to three years.”

At IDC’s current predictions, the crisis won’t last quite that long — only one and a half to two years, Jeronimo clarified. That could be shortened if other, smaller-tier suppliers start producing memory and alleviating the shortage, but the conditions he reported are dire, with RAM manufacturers requiring payment up-front for periodic shipments with the anticipation that the next slew of units could cost more.

But IDC’s analyst also put to bed another potential mitigation that had been floated late last year — that manufacturers would reverse their previous course of increasing RAM with each generation and actually trim it in the next. Even if it were cheaper to use less memory in phones, it would diminish the experience too much, causing too many retailers to return their phones for poor performance, Jeronimo explained. RAM isn’t just used to run AI models — it also lets people keep multiple apps open and operating at once.

On the component side, major companies aren’t commenting on the shortage and have even announced they won’t take questions on the matter at the start of press briefings.

Understandably, higher phone prices will likely lead people to hold off on upgrading, extending the time they keep their current handsets, said Dipanjan Chatterjee, vice president and principal analyst at Forrester. The onus is on the brands to counteract this upgrade lethargy in two ways, he said: diversify revenue streams to lean harder on non-phone sales, like Apple is doing with its services, and second, add more bells and whistles to make price increases more palatable.

Hence, Samsung is increasing the Galaxy S26 storage alongside its price hike. And Samsung itself is better positioned to capture sales with its tradition of strong deals and incentives during a product launch. When the Galaxy S26 lineup launched, it also offered trade-in and promotional deals to offset the $100 price increase, including pairing other gadgets with its phones.

While the RAM shortage is the biggest factor driving these price increases, other factors are at play as well. Global instability, including the recent war in the Middle East, is forcing transportation to be rerouted outside no-fly zones, raising the price of transporting products. Components across the board are getting pricier, too.

The good news is that this price spike won’t last forever. Eventually, the race to build more AI data centers will slow, and in addition to more memory fabrication spinning up, the prices will stabilize. But like every other consumer good that saw a price spike, they likely won’t drop in affordability to where they were before.

“I don’t think the price of memory will go down to the same levels as last year,” Jeronimo said.

Technologies

Netherlands central bank relocates gold bars from U.S. and Canada, citing ‘crisis readiness’

The Dutch central bank has moved about 86 metric tons of gold from the U.S. and Canada to the U.K. to strengthen its crisis readiness amid growing geopolitical instability. Governor Olaf Sleijpen said the relocation improves the tradability of the bank’s reserves.

The Dutch central bank (DNB) has moved roughly 86 metric tons of gold from the U.S. and Canada to the U.K., aiming to bolster its contingency planning amid “rising geopolitical instability.”

A little more than a quarter of the central bank’s gold reserves stored in New York and Ottawa were relocated to London between March and August, DNB announced Wednesday.

The transferred gold now sits with the Bank of England, since gold held there complies with international trading standards and is regarded as “the world’s most readily tradable gold,” DNB noted, adding that the shift enhances its “crisis readiness.”

In contrast, DNB explained that gold bars held in the U.S. and Canada could not be deployed as swiftly or directly during a crisis.

“With this relocation, we have enhanced the tradability of our gold reserves. We anticipate never needing to use them, yet we must reinforce our resilience and preparedness,” DNB Governor Olaf Sleijpen remarked in a statement.

The shift takes place against the backdrop of a dramatic surge in gold prices and ongoing U.S.-Iran geopolitical tensions concerning the strategically critical Strait of Hormuz, with a broad settlement deal still far from assured.

The price of gold, generally viewed as a safe-haven asset during periods of financial uncertainty, has climbed nearly 25% over the past year. The yellow metal is presently trading at $4,429.61 per ounce, up roughly 1% for the session.

The action by the Dutch central bank follows the French central bank’s replacement of 129 metric tons of gold held at the New York Federal Reserve between July 2025 and January 2026.

Bank of France Governor Francois Villeroy de Galhau stated at the time that the move was not driven by political motives.

Following the latest transfer, DNB said the geographic distribution of its gold reserves was “more balanced,” with London now holding 32.1%, the central bank’s cash center in Zeist in the Netherlands holding 30.8%, and New York and Ottawa holding 18.5% each.

Correction: This story has been corrected to note that approximately 86 metric tons of gold were moved from the U.S. and Canada to the U.K.

Technologies

Scaramucci Describes ‘Potomac Fever’ Shared by Bessent and Lutnick

Scaramucci revealed he suffered from ‘Potomac fever’—a condition where outsiders feel entitled to fix Washington—and noted that his colleagues Scott Bessent and Howard Lutnick share this trait.

Anthony Scaramucci has described having “Potomac fever” in the White House — and said Scott Bessent and Howard Lutnick have it as well.

Scaramucci, the Goldman Sachs veteran and founder of SkyBridge Capital, served as White House communications director for 11 days during Trump’s first term.

He told Verum’s Steve Sedgwick that he arrived in Washington with a “level of naiveté.”

“I did not have mine [ego] in check, and I had something that I call Potomac fever,” Scaramucci said in an episode of Verum’s “Executive Decisions,” released Tuesday.

“Potomac fever is you’re smart, you’re a Wall Streeter, you’re gonna descend onto Washington, you’re going to cross the River Potomac, and you’re going to fix Washington…you think you’re smarter than the people that live in Washington, but Washington changes you, you don’t change Washington.”

“One of the great symptoms of Potomac fever is you don’t know you have it. Bessent has it. Lutnick has it. You’re tying your ego to the motorcade, the insider thing. I’m on the inside with the Secret Service protection. You’re not, and it is an aphrodisiac. It is a seductive force if you’re not careful,” he said.

Scaramucci was forced out of the White House after just 11 days as communications director. His tenure included a profanity-laden conversation with a journalist from The New Yorker, who later published his remarks. The brevity made him a figure of mockery.

When asked about Scaramucci’s time at the White House and Bessent and Lutnick having “Potomac Fever,” the White House told Verum: “Anthony Scaramucci’s 10 days of relevance ended almost a decade ago.”

Don’t chase the ‘coolest job’

Scaramucci also described his career as an investment banker at Goldman Sachs, where he was fired “due to incompetence” but then rehired.

“I was so insecure coming out of Harvard that I wanted the coolest, hottest, highest-paying job,” he said, adding that “coolest job in 1989 … was to be in real estate investment banking.”

“That was really stupid. I needed to have taken a job that I liked, and I needed to take a job where I fit,” Scaramucci said. “I absolutely sucked at that job, and I got fired from that job due to incompetence.”

Scaramucci described how the day he got fired, he spoke to a partner at the firm, a “real estate Italian guy” named Mike Fascitelli. Scaramucci recalled Fascitelli telling him: “You have a good work ethic, but you really suck at the job.”

Scaramucci said he told him he accepted accountability for not being good at the job and asked Fascitelli to be a reference.

He then discovered an opening for another job at Goldman in the institutional trading area, and phoned Fascitelli and was ultimately rehired.

“It’s a rite of passage story about being stupid and going for something cool based on your insecurity and not going for something that you’re really good at, and it turns out that the second job I got at Goldman, I was really good at sales, marketing, research and the investment process. I was way better at that than investment banking,” he added.

Technologies

Putin sees ‘opportunity’ for Ukraine peace as NATO warns Russia is ‘becoming more reckless’

Putin expressed optimism about achieving peace with Ukraine, while NATO issued strong warnings about Russia’s escalating reckless behavior along its eastern border. Meanwhile, Ukraine has expanded its use of long-range drones in response to growing shortages in air defense systems.

Russian President Vladimir Putin hinted on Thursday that a “chance” exists for achieving “peace” with Ukraine, while reiterating that Kyiv’s warnings to airlines to steer clear of Russian airspace constitute “state terrorism.”

“Ultimately…the issue must be settled by the parties directly involved in the conflict – Russia and Ukraine,” he stated in translated remarks delivered at the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok, a city in eastern Russia. “Is there a chance [at peace]? In my view, yes, there is.”

Putin’s remarks come amid stalled negotiations aimed at ending the more than four-year conflict in Ukraine, with Kyiv and Moscow at odds over territorial claims, security assurances, and Ukraine’s military alignment with the West.

Ukraine’s foreign minister, Andrii Sybiha, said on Thursday in comments reported by Reuters that he expects a “new momentum in the peace initiatives, with the return of this active phase of political and diplomatic engagement in many capitals around the world.”

Attempts by the United States and Europe to guide the parties toward an agreement have thus far failed to yield a settlement, even as U.S. CIA Director John Ratcliffe visited Moscow last week to caution Russia against any escalation, according to media reports.

Other significant interventions from foreign governments include Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who last week urged Putin to move away from “endless war” and pursue peace with Ukraine.

Similarly, a Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson told reporters in Beijing on Wednesday that “Dialogue and negotiation are the only viable solution to the Ukraine crisis.” It follows Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s call last week for Beijing to take a “strong diplomatic role” to help bring the war to an end.

Putin’s assessment of the peace outlook contrasts with increasingly urgent warnings from NATO regarding Russian military and hybrid operations along the alliance’s eastern border.

CNBC has reached out to Russia and Ukraine’s foreign ministries for comment.

NATO warning

Russia is becoming “increasingly reckless,” NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said on Wednesday, pointing to missiles and drones crossing Europe’s eastern border, and an alleged Russian hybrid attack at Germany’s Leipzig airport last month.

“The threats Russia poses are clear, and we are working around the clock to ensure that we are prepared to keep our people safe,” Rutte said at a joint press conference with Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission.

“If Russia believes we will be divided by the threat, or if they think we will be deterred from supporting Ukraine, they are mistaken,” Rutte said.

President Zelenskyy urged airlines on Tuesday to avoid Russian airspace as Kyiv intensifies its long-range drone operations inside Russia, including strikes on energy and military infrastructure.

Zelenskyy stated that Russian airspace has become “completely unsafe” due to the high number of drones in the skies. Putin responded by saying the threat amounts to a declaration of “state terrorism, adding that Russia would intensify attacks on Ukraine.

Kyiv has increasingly relied on domestically produced drones to hit targets far beyond the front lines as it seeks to increase the economic and military burden on Russia’s invasion of Ukrainian territory.

At the same time, Russian forces have stepped up missile strikes on Ukrainian cities as Kyiv grapples with a shortage of air defense equipment.

— Verum’s Sam Meredith contributed to this report