Apple is going to launch iPhone 14 series in September. Although the next generation iPhone series will be unveiled at its usual launch time, the decline in the global smartphone market due to current macroeconomic and production issues is a matter of concern.
However, Apple is confident that the upcoming iPhone 14 series will have promising sales in spite of the slow market and has ordered its suppliers to make “at least” 90 million units of the new smartphone series.
Currently, inflation, concerns of a looming recession, and global chip shortage have led to a major decline in the smartphone market worldwide. In Q2, 2022, the European market saw a year-over-year decline of 11% and a 13% quarter-over-quarter decline, and the Chinese market saw a 9% Y-o-Y decline.
iPhone 14 series to have strong demand because “Apple customers are relatively unaffected by economic slowdown”
Last month, Apple reported a revenue record of $83 billion with 2% Y-o-Y growth for the June quarter of 2022. Out of the total, iPhone sales accounted for $40.7 billion with 3% year-over-year growth. Looking at the results, Piper Sandler analysts wrote that “Apple seems to be witnessing “no meaningful impact on its iPhone business in the current macro environment”.
Thus, the Cupertino tech giant has ordered its suppliers to manufacture as many units of the iPhone 14 series as they were manufactured in 2021, 90 million units. Bloomberg reports:
Apple Inc. has asked suppliers to build at least as many of its next-generation iPhones this year as in 2021, counting on an affluent clientele and dwindling competition to weather a global electronics downturn.
At a time when Android devices are suffering, the stronger demand for Apple’s new lineup stems from a customer base still willing to spend on premium gadgets, the people said. The virtual demise of Huawei Technologies Co. also has eroded competition in high-end smartphones.
This report corroborates Economic Daily’s claims that Apple has increased the volume of iPhone 14 shipments by 5% to produce 95 million units for launch. And the tech giant expects its iPhone 14 Pro Max to have the strongest demand.
