Apple Analyst Finds iPhone 14 Less Popular With Chinese Customers, Initial Data Suggests

Anusuya Lahiri

Mon, Sep 26, 2022, 3:54 AM 2 min read

Chinese consumers bought fewer Apple Inc (NASDAQ: AAPL) iPhone 14 handsets in the early days of its availability than the product's predecessor a year ago, Jefferies analysts, including Edison Lee, found.
In the first three days of delivery, Apple's latest smartphone series sales came to 987,000 units, 11% lower than comparable sales of the iPhone 13 family last year, Bloomberg reports citing Jefferies.
It's a rare double-digit decline for the iPhone, whose sales had been the most resilient in a Chinese smartphone market that's seen its domestic leaders slump all year.
The initial data suggested that iPhone 14's sales may not be as strong as the pre-order levels indicated since pre-orders do not come with payment obligations.
Smartphone shipments in China fell by almost a third to 19.1 million in July, adding to a year of dwindling sales in the world's largest mobile market.
Apple began assembling iPhone 14 devices in India, marking a boost to its supply chain diversification.
Earlier, BofA analyst Wamsi Mohan indicated extended ship dates for the iPhone 14 Pro models versus last year's pre-order cycle.
iPhone 14's ship dates were most elongated in China, where it kept the iPhone prices intact, expecting the growth to offset the ASP pressure from price and FX.
Mohan also highlighted that the lower differentiation between iPhone 14 series and the Pro models suggested weaker overall demand for iPhone 14.
Price Action: AAPL shares closed lower by 1.51% at $150.43 on Friday.
Photo Via Company