Apple China Sales Drop 28% Following Corona Outbreak

Apple Sales in China fell sharply in January due to the coronavirus outbreak, stated a government research note.

The demand for iPhone products fell by 28 percent during the month of January, compared to the previous month, presenting a greater than usual decline for this time of the year.

The sales are expected to witness a steeper fall in February as a result of the falling levels of supply and demand affected by the virus outbreak.

[caption id="attachment_112072" align="aligncenter" width="1024"] A woman wearing a protective face-mask walks outside of a closed-off Apple Store in Beijing[/caption]

The iPhone maker announced earlier in the month that it might not yield the expected revenues due to the spread of corona, an issue which most phone companies using Chinese parts would face.

Apple has also closed its stores in China as a result of the outbreak.

Overall January smartphone shipments in China dwindled by about 37 percent, according to data from the Chinese Academy of Information and Communications Technology.

Earlier this month, United Airlines, which has disclosed that Apple is a major customer, said it was cancelling all fights to China until April.

Meanwhile, the US tech giant said a month earlier that it was restricting employee to travel to China to “business-critical” situations.

Earlier, US President Donald Trump said he has asked Apple CEO Tim Cook to consider helping to develop 5G networks during his tour to the Mac Pro manufacturing plant in Texas.