The coronavirus outbreak seems to be sparing none of the Chinese phone makers, and Xiaomi is the latest smartphone manufacturer to be affected by the epidemic. Xiaomi’s China-based supply chain has taken a huge hit, forcing the company to hike the price of Redmi Note 8 by Rs. 500 in India.
The company deems the price hike as temporary and it hopes to start selling the phone for its original asking price as soon as the component cost stabilizes. Amid the price hike, the Redmi Note 8 has gone out of stock on Amazon; however, Xiaomi has confirmed it will go soon on sale via the e-commerce giant. It is worth mentioning here that the price hike is only applicable to the 4GB RAM+64GB ROM Redmi Note 8 variant.
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While the aforesaid model originally retailed for Rs. 9,999, it now carries a slightly steeper price tag of Rs. 10,499. While talking to Gadgets 360, a Xiaomi spokesperson explained that “the extended shutdown in China is likely to have an impact on our Supply chain and, there is a risk of impact on the overall quantum of component supplies.”
Xiaomi is leaving no stone unturned in an attempt to find alternative supply channels for these components, as well as raw materials. In the meantime, the short supply is likely to negatively impact the prices of these peripherals. As a result, the company is left with no choice but to temporarily hike the price of the product.
The effect of the shortage of component supplies is apparent on Xiaomi’s official online store, Mi.com, and Amazon. At the time of writing, the Redmi Note 8 was out of stock on Amazon, but Xiaomi has assured it will be available soon. The Amazon product page suggests the Redmi Note 8 4GB + 6GB model will be available in stock on February 18th.
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(Via)
