*Consumers might be able to find some good deals before the price hike happens as Intel could significantly raise the cost of making computers for manufacturing companies and buying computers for consumers

Gbenga Kayode | ConsumerConnect

Intel, one of the world’s largest and most valuable makers of semiconductor chips and central processing units (CPUs) for computer manufacturers, such as Acer, Lenovo, HP and Dell, is reportedly considering a price hike later 2022.

If the Big Tech activates the proposal, Intel could significantly raise the cost of making computers for those companies and buying computers for consumers, agency report said.

Japan-based business newspaper Nikkei Asia also noted that Intel’s reason for the price increase is linked to rising costs for nearly everything it uses to produce components.

The publication stated that the final percentage increases are not locked in yet, but sources informed they are likely to range from a minimal single-digit increase to more than 10 percent and 20 percent in some cases.

Report indicated an attempt to reach out to Intel for confirmation of the reported price increase, but the company did not immediately respond for a request for comment, said ConsumerAffairs.

Inflation impacts consumer spending

Companies like Intel that pull in nearly $80billion in annual revenue can probably weather recent price point pressures on things, such as chips, labour, and shipping, but that’s just part of the equation. The other part is consumer spending, which has taken a crippling blow due to rising inflation.

Nikkei said another consumer-side issue companies are wrestling with is dwindling demand for smartphones, PCs, TVs, and game consoles.

It is only months away from the typical fall release of new electronic gear in time for the holidays, but Gartner reports that worldwide PC shipments experienced the sharpest decline in nine years during the second quarter (Q2) of 2022.

This development is said to have forced device makers to sit on a pile of unsold items. It has become such a problem that Samsung Electronics recently told suppliers to halt shipments of some of its products, report said.