Recently, Apple (AAPL, stock price $236.48, market value $3.6 trillion) CEO Tim Cook once again appeared in China.
On October 21st, Cook posted on Weibo, saying, "I'm glad to be back in Beijing again. Walking with the talented @ ChenMan in the place where she grew up and experiencing how this city inspires her creativity is a special experience. I really appreciate how she uses the iPhone 16 Pro Max to capture the beauty of Beijing
In the posted Weibo video, Cook and photographer Chen Man stroll around Beijing's hutongs to take photos.
On October 22nd, Apple CEO Tim Cook once again posted on Weibo, saying, "We are committed to empowering communities and creating opportunities. We are delighted to meet with students from China Agricultural University and Zhejiang University to learn how they use iPhones and iPads to help farmers promote more efficient and sustainable agricultural practices
According to Securities Times, on October 22nd, Apple CEO Tim Cook visited a farm in Shunyi, Beijing. According to the official Weibo account of Sina Technology, Cook said that he grew up on a farm in Alabama as a child and was very familiar with these crops. The staff at the organic farm showed him scientifically grown vegetables and fruits, and Apple COO Jeff Williams joked, 'I'm hungry.'.
The "China trip" in October has become a tradition for Cook in recent years. On the evening of October 16, 2023, Cook announced his visit to Chengdu on Weibo and attached a photo of the Anshun Corridor Bridge in Chengdu taken by an iPhone 15 Pro Max. Subsequently, Cook visited Apple's Taikoo Li retail store in Chengdu and interacted with players of "King of Glory".
And Cook's support for Chinese agriculture and rural areas was also reflected during his last "China Tour". On October 17, 2023, Apple announced a donation of 25 million yuan to the China Rural Development Foundation to assist farmers, rural students, and teachers.
Recently, during the 2024 Double 11 E-commerce Festival, Apple's iPhone 16 series, which has only been released for one month, saw a price reduction across all models, marking the first official channel price reduction since the release of the new phone.
The official flagship store of Apple Store announced the Tmall Double 11 promotion, which will be available in stock at 8pm on October 21st. The iPhone 16 series will receive a maximum discount of 1600 yuan.
According to the official Tmall Apple flagship store promotion, iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, AirPods and other series of products enjoy varying degrees of discount. The entire iPhone 16 series can receive a 500 yuan coupon, with a starting price of 5499 yuan. The starting price of the iPhone 16 Pro Max drops to 9499 yuan, which is close to the price of third-party channels. Consumers can also enjoy an additional subsidy of trade in, up to 1100 yuan.
In August of this year, Apple disclosed its financial report for the third quarter of fiscal year 2024 (i.e. the second quarter of the calendar year). The company achieved a revenue of 85.777 billion US dollars in the quarter, a year-on-year increase of 5%; The net profit was 21.448 billion US dollars, a year-on-year increase of 8%.
Despite achieving dual growth in revenue and profit globally in the second quarter, Apple's flagship product, the iPhone, experienced a sustained decline in revenue. Meanwhile, Apple has encountered a downturn in the Chinese market, with its revenue in Greater China reaching $14.728 billion, a year-on-year decrease of 6.5%. According to Canalys statistics, Apple fell out of the top five sales rankings in the Chinese smartphone market for the first time in the second quarter.
Regarding this, Tim Cook stated during the earnings conference call that sales in the entire Greater China region decreased by 6.5% year-on-year. But if calculated at a fixed exchange rate, the decline is less than 3%, and behind this, more than 50% of the year-on-year decline is related to the exchange rate.
Although iPhone revenue has declined, Tim Cook said on the earnings conference call, "We are very excited about the record high iPhone installation base this quarter. If calculated at a fixed exchange rate, iPhone performance has increased He is still satisfied with multiple data dimensions in the region. According to its disclosure, the number of existing iPhone users in Greater China has reached a record high, and the number of upgraded users in Chinese Mainland has also set a new record in the fiscal quarter of June.
Capital Securities Research News believes that it is not necessarily the future normal for Apple mobile phones to fall out of the top five in the Chinese Mainland market. Apple phones are likely to return to the top five in the coming quarters, and Chinese domestic mobile phone manufacturers will face even more intense competition. Cost performance and the use of AI innovation will become the main themes for mobile phone manufacturers in the second half of the year.
Daily Economic News Comprehensive from Securities Times, Cook Weibo, Public Information