Apple ‘pleased’ with China sales, which beat expectations in the March quarter, as it eyes India expansion
- Apple sales fell 2.9 per cent in Greater China and 2.5 per cent globally, but it beat expectations owing to strong sales of services and iPhones
- The company has been looking to diversify its supply chain away from China, as sales across the rest of Asia jumped more than 15 per cent, doubling in India
The world’s largest company by market capitalisation saw global revenue decline 2.5 per cent to US$94.8 billion in the first three months of the year, beating expectations by about US$2 billion. It was the second consecutive quarterly sales decline for the company.
In Greater China, which includes Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan, Apple generated US$17.8 billion in sales. In the Americas, revenue fell 7.6 per cent to US$37.8 billion.
Apple’s US$24.2 billion in global profit for the quarter, while down 3.4 per cent year on year, also surpassed expectations by about US$1.5 billion owing to record revenue from services and strong iPhone sales.
“We were particularly pleased with the performance we saw in emerging markets,” Apple CEO Tim Cook said during an earnings call, adding that the company achieved several records for the quarter in countries including India, where revenue doubled year on year.
“What you see there is a lot of people entering the middle class, and I’m hopeful that we can convince some of them to buy an iPhone,” Cook said in the call. “Right now, that’s working out well.”
The emphasis on India follows efforts from Apple to diversify some of its manufacturing away from China, with a particular focus on expanding capacity in India. Shipments of iPhones made in India grew 65 per cent year on year in 2022, according to Counterpoint.