Apple stock tanks as CEO warns of 'lower than anticipated' sales in China
Apple chief executive Tim Cook warned investors late on Wednesday that sales in its all-important holiday quarter would fall short of expectations as a result of "lower than anticipated" sales in China, marking the first such move in nearly 20 years, according to analysts.
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The US tech giant's boss said Apple had become another victim of the US' ongoing trade war with China and also claimed that other factors such as the company's move to offer cheaper replacement batteries for its iPhones had hit it where it hurt.
Apple stated that China, which accounts for roughly 15% of its total sales, had seen its economy slow down to its weakest rate of expansion in 28 years in 2018 as it continued to feel the effects of a darkening trade outlook and government attempts to rein in risky lending after a rapid rise in debt levels.
"While we anticipated some challenges in key emerging markets, we did not foresee the magnitude of the economic deceleration, particularly in Greater China," Cook said before going on to highlight the "rising trade tensions" between Beijing and Washington.
Apple now expects revenues for its first fiscal quarter to come to roughly $84bn, down from the $89bn-93bn previously forecast.
The company's shares dropped 7.55% in after-hours trading on Wall Street - wiping more than $50bn off the firm's market value and leaving it at $748.5bn.
While Cook focused on the continued traction seen in Apple's "non-iPhone businesses," including wearable devices and supplementary services such as iCloud, Apple Pay and the App Store, the CEO did admit that the downward revision of its sales forecast was "disappointing".
As of 0830 GMT, Apple shares had ticked up 0.11% in pre-market trading to $157.92 each.