Apple boss Tim Cook urges China to keep opening up its economy
- Technology giant’s CEO tells forum in Beijing that opening up is ‘essential’ for China to reach its full potential and for the global economy to thrive
- ‘The fire burns higher if more people bring wood to it’, Cook says, repeating words once used by Chinese President Xi Jinping
Apple chief executive Tim Cook has encouraged China to keep opening up its economy, as his company grapples with weaker demand from the nation and uncertainty over its trade war with the United States.
“We urge China to continue to open up,” he said during a speech at the annual China Development Forum in Beijing on Saturday. “We see that as essential. Not only for China to reach its full potential, but for the global economy to thrive.”
Smartphone shipments in China in 2018 fell 10.5 per cent from the previous year to 397.7 million, according to IDC. But Apple sales have also suffered as Chinese consumers spurn iPhones in favour of comparable devices from Huawei, Xiaomi, Oppo and other local, lower priced rivals.
Cook has been a vocal opponent of the US-China trade war, mentioning it on Apple’s earnings calls and meeting one-on-one with US President Donald Trump. So far Apple’s flagship products, most of which are made in China, have escaped additional tariffs placed on Chinese imports.