Mensajepor bullbear » Lun Ene 14, 2013 9:54 am
-- Apple cuts orders for iPhone 5 components due to weaker-than-expected demand, people familiar with the situation say
--iPhone 5 screens for January-March quarter have dropped roughly half of what the company had previously planned to order, they say
(Recasts lead and adds analyst comment from paragraph 7.)
By Juro Osawa
HONG KONG-- Apple Inc. (AAPL) has cut its orders for components for the iPhone 5 due to weaker-than-expected demand, people familiar with the situation said Monday, indicating sales of the latest smartphone haven't been as strong as previously anticipated.
Apple's orders for iPhone 5 screens for the January-March quarter, for example, have dropped to roughly half of what the company had previously planned to order, the people said.
The Cupertino, Calif. , company has also cut orders for components other than screens, according to one of the people.
Apple notified the suppliers of the order cut last month, the people said.
The move comes as the company has been facing greater challenges from Samsung Electronics Co. and other makers of smartphones powered by Google Inc.'s Android operating system. While Apple has set the agenda for the smartphone market since it released its first iPhone in 2007, South Korea's Samsung , which sells many Android-based models at various price points, has already overtaken the U.S. company as the world's largest smartphone vendor by market share. Demand is also growing for inexpensive smartphones from Chinese makers such as Huawei Technologies Co.
While the popularity of iPhones and iPads has been boosting Apple's earnings and investor expectations over the past few years, there have been concerns in recent quarters about how long the growth momentum can continue. Apple's stock price, which peaked at about $705.07 in September, closed Friday at $520.30 , down 0.6%.
Some analysts have mentioned possible order cuts at suppliers and raised questions about demand for the iPhone 5.
Apple may have made particularly large iPhone 5 orders to suppliers for the October-December quarter, because of earlier concerns about manufacturing difficulties with some components such as screens, said Sanford Bernstein analyst Alberto Moel .
Citigroup last month lowered its rating for Apple to Neutral from Buy, citing concerns about iPhone order cuts. The brokerage noted that a sharp increase in iPhone 5 production during the October-December period may have left Apple with more inventory than expected. Still, it also said that "good not great" demand is likely a factor behind order cuts.
"It is unlikely that Apple is cutting orders in a 'great' demand