Apple’s China iPhone shipments fall 35 per cent in November, second straight double-digit decline

Apple’s iPhone shipments in China fell more than 35 per cent in November, marking their second straight double-digit decline as sales of the cheaper iPhone 11 remained sluggish, brokerage Credit Suisse said on Thursday.

Shares of the company fell more than 1 per cent to 267.67 in early trading.

Total iPhone shipments in China in the September-November period dropped 7.4 per cent from a year earlier, Credit Suisse analyst Matthew Cabral said, citing data from China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology.

The latest iPhone 11 range hit stores in China in September, with short queues of diehard fans contrasting with the hundreds who camped out ahead of some previous launches.

Apple seeks waivers from tariffs on iPhone parts, Apple Watch and AirPods

Cabral also wrote that Apple would have a tough time pushing through tariff-related price increases to US consumer if the 15 per cent tariffs on billions in Chinese-made consumer goods come into effect on December 15.

Apple has asked the Trump administration to waive levies on China-made Apple Watches, iPhone components and other consumer products. President Donald Trump said last month he was considering the request.

Apple’s market share in China slipped to 5 per cent from 7 per cent in the third quarter, while Huawei Technologies captured a record 42 per cent of China’s smartphone market in the same period, according to a report by market research firm Canalys released in October.

In its latest fourth quarter, Apple reported a 2.4 per cent drop in China sales.