Apple has reportedly reduced its number of iPhone X orders for the January-March quarter from a maximum 50 million to “20 million or fewer,” a new report claims. Further reductions are possible for the April-June quarter.
The figures are having a knock-on effect on Apple’s suppliers. Samsung, which makes OLED displays for the iPhone, saw its stock fall as much as 2.3 percent in morning trade, while shares of Japanese OLED component makers, including Hodogaya Chemical and Hirata Corp also declined.
Yesterday, we reported that Samsung, having ramped up its production capacity to deal with expected iPhone X orders, is now sitting on excess production capacity.
While Samsung hopes to sell OLED displays to other manufacturers, many have been slow to adopt the technology due to the expense of changing from LCD screens. Samsung is now slashing OLED production figures as a result.
Have sales figures been disappointing?
iPhone X sales figures have been a source of controversy since virtually day one. Demand for iPhone X has reportedly nosedived since the holidays,at one point wiping $46 billion off Apple’s market value in under a week. Other commentators, however, have claimed that Apple likely didn’t order as many phones as some are suggesting.
That would mean that analysts are inflating their expectations for iPhone X sales figures beyond what even Apple was hoping for. Then again, it wouldn’t explain why companies like Samsung now seem to be finding themselves with so much excess OLED stock.
We guess we’ll find out once Apple releases its calendar Q1 2018 earnings in a bit under three months’ time!
Source: Reuters
