Apple Inc pulled off a strong quarter in China by switching up retail tactics and pushing a cheaper iPhone, becoming one of the few US tech giants to ride the country\u2019s post-pandemic recovery despite Washington-Beijing tensions.<\/p>\n
IPhone shipments there surged a surprising 35% in the April to June period, research firm Canalys estimates, driving a 2% rise in Greater China revenue to $9.3 billion.<\/p>\n
Chief executive officer Tim Cook said sales actually grew 6% on a constant-currency basis, propelled by demand for Macs and iPads from millions now accustomed to working from home. Its out-performance in Greater China – Apple\u2019s single biggest international market – drove quarterly revenue well above Wall Street\u2019s forecasts.<\/p>\n
Apple\u2019s strength in the world\u2019s No. 2 economy surprised analysts who\u2019ve seen local consumers turn increasingly to homegrown brands, at a time Washington accuses the likes of Huawei Technologies Co and ByteDance Ltd of spying or jeopardizing national security.<\/p>\n
Huawei – the company most squarely in Trump\u2019s cross-hairs – eclipsed Samsung Electronics Co in global smartphone sales for the first time last quarter, thanks in large part to an upswell of home-crowd support.<\/p>\n
Apple, whose Chinese-based suppliers employ upwards of a million people, was swift to adapt its tactics after Covid-19 emerged in February, turning to third-party distributors after shutting most of its stores.<\/p>\n
It also focused on marketing and selling online, tapping the surge of internet activity that followed a rolling nationwide lockdown.<\/p>\n
The iPhone maker jumped aboard a plethora of online sales promotions hosted by Alibaba Group Holding Ltd and JD.com Inc in June, traditionally one of several peak spending months.<\/p>\n
Apple moved more than 500 million yuan ($72 million) of devices in a single day during JD\u2019s \u201c6.18\u201d shopping marathon, the Chinese company said.<\/p>\n
It probably also benefited from the introduction of a lower-cost smartphone, the iPhone SE.<\/p>\n
\u201cApple defied expectations in Q2. Its new iPhone SE was critical in the quarter,\u201d Canalys analyst Vincent Thielke said. \u201cApple is also demonstrating skills in new user acquisition.\u201d<\/p>\n