In a surprising move, Apple is offering temporary discounts on its iPhones and other products in China. This is not something Apple usually does, especially as competition in Asia’s smartphone market is getting tougher.
As part of a sale for the Lunar New Year, Apple’s official Chinese website is showing discounts of up to 500 RMB ($70) on the newest iPhones. They are also giving discounts on other top Apple products like the Mac and iPad, up to 800 RMB ($112) and 400 RMB ($56) respectively. The sale will be happening from January 18 to January 21.
Apple typically doesn’t like to directly lower its prices. They usually rely on having a premium image to attract people who want high-quality products. Even though third-party sellers sometimes discount Apple products, the company itself rarely does it.
The decision to cut iPhone prices comes after about five months since Huawei, a big Chinese tech company, released its latest smartphone, the Mate 60 Pro. Chinese people really liked the Huawei phone, especially because it uses a special kind of chip. This chip, though, has caused some concerns among officials in the United States.
Around the same time as Huawei’s big phone release, there were reports from the Wall Street Journal saying that China had told its government officials not to use iPhones. However, a spokesperson from China later said there were no laws or rules banning iPhones.
These new discounts on iPhones in China are making people wonder about how much people want Apple products in China. China has always been an important market for Apple, making up about one-fifth of all their global sales last year.
According to Counterpoint Research, the sales of the iPhone 15 went down by 4.5% in China compared to the iPhone 14 in the first two weeks after it came out in September. Last week, Jefferies Research told its clients that iPhone sales fell by 30% in the first week of this year, as reported by Reuters.
China is one of Apple’s most important places to sell things. It’s second only to North America in terms of sales. But China’s economy has been having a hard time lately, and this has been affecting Apple’s overall growth. Just last week, Apple lost its title as the company worth the most in the stock market, with Microsoft taking the lead. This change shows how Apple is facing challenges in staying on top amid changes in the market and economic problems in China.
