India braces for 18-month memory chip squeeze; smartphone prices set to climb 20-30%

IESA flags sustained DRAM/NAND shortage through 2026, with Micron India's capacity already fully booked. Electronics retailers face margin pressure and stretched replacement cycles as ISM 2.0 incentives top $10B but capacity lags demand.

— Source publishedWed, 20 May, 2026, 19:49 IST·First seen Wed, 20 May, 2026, 19:59 IST·Source The Hindu BusinessLine

What happened

Micron India · IESA warns India faces sustained memory chip shortage for 12-18 months, pushing smartphone prices up 20-30%. Micron's India capacity fully

Key facts

  • 18 months
  • 20-30% price rise
  • $10 billion ISM 1.0

Why this matters

The capacity-demand gap behind ISM 2.0 creates acquisition windows in domestic memory packaging, refurb/trade-in platforms, and component distributors positioned to monetize sustained scarcity.