Ahead of Apple’s next-generation 5G-capable iPhone 12 series launch, JPMorgan Chase says that an August rebound in smartphone shipments following the COVID-19 shutdowns earlier in the year indicates improving momentum for the smartphone market in China.
Mike Peterson for AppleInsider:
In a note to investors seen by AppleInsider, JP Morgan analyst Samik Chatterjee provided an update on Chinese mobile device shipments based on new China Academy of Information and Communications Technology (CAICT) data. According to the CAICT, smartphone shipments rebounded month-over-month in August after three consecutive months of decline.
While domestic Chinese manufacturers saw their shipments rise about 18% month-over-month, shipments of smartphones produced by foreign firms — and primarily Apple — rose 56% over the same period.
Chatterjee forecasts that the improving smartphone shipments could serve to “assuage investor concerns” of a slowdown for Apple in China.
MacDailyNews Take: This is great news out of China for Apple ahead of the 5G-capable 5.4-inch iPhone 12, 6.1-inch iPhone 12 Max, 6.1-inch iPhone 12 Pro, and flagship 6.7-inch iPhone 12 Pro Max!
I hope investors aren’t counting on an iPhone ‘supercycle’ in China where consumers don’t need an iPhone to run WeChat. Any cheap mid-range Android smartphone will do just fine and unfortunately, Apple has no solution to this problem. Thankfully, this problem only exists for the iPhone in China. Tim Cook put a lot of goodwill effort in China but WeChat is simply too useful for Chinese consumers to ignore.