Back in October of last year, Apple CEO Tim Cook had mentioned that it was “just a matter of time” before China would become a bigger market for the company than the U.S. was. It seems as though for the latest iPhone 6 and 6 Plus devices, that time has come. According to the Financial Times, Apple’s upcoming Q1 earnings call will be confirming that more iPhone devices were sold in the China than the U.S. According to UBS analysts, about 36% of iPhone shipments belonged to China, whereas only 24% accounted for the U.S.
Analysts at UBS estimate that China accounted for 36 per cent of iPhone shipments in the most recent quarter, compared with 24 per cent for the US. During the same period last year, 29 per cent of units were sold in the US and 22 per cent were in China, UBS said.
Creative Strategies also noted that the Cupertino-based company has sold more iPhones in China than in the US by approximately 2 million. Although all numbers are just based off iPhones, the company’s flagship device makes up practically half of Apple’s revenue. According to Ben Bajarin from Creative Strategies:
They will likely do more in China than US from here on out,” he said. “It certainly shows how important the China market is to Apple’s upside.
China will be getting five new Apple Retail Stores as Tim Cook has already mentioned the company’s plans on expanding in the region. Apple is apparently also in talks with Alibaba to bring Apple Pay to the country as well.
Source:
Financial Times
