Taiwanese suppliers for the iPhone are reporting a month-to-month revenue decline for November reports the Nikkei Asian Review. The news could be a sign that demand for iPhones has peaked, suggest Lauly Li and Cheng Ting-Fang, writing:
TAIPEI — A majority of Apple’s Taiwanese suppliers suffered a monthly fall in revenue in November, as hopes for a sales uptick of the new iPhones ahead of the holiday season were dashed.
Seven of nine Apple suppliers tracked by the Nikkei Asian Review logged a month-on-month revenue decline in November, according to figures released on Monday. The nine suppliers together accounted for 87% of sales posted by 19 Taiwanese tech companies, of which 16 posted a fall in month-on-month revenues.
The figures suggest that iPhone sales have peaked in October, earlier than last year when sales hit a high in December.
November revenues recorded by 19 Taiwanese tech companies saw a 1% decline on the month to $1.3 trillion New Taiwan dollars ($42 billion), drawing to a halt an eight-month rise. The 19 companies are suppliers for smartphones, personal computers and servers.
Among the Apple suppliers, sales at key iPhone camera lens supplier Largan Precision plunged 23% on the month in November, while iPhone metal frame and casing maker Catcher Technology lost 25% in revenue from the previous month.
Revenue at iPhone assembler Pegatron dropped 6.3% month-on-month while that at Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co, the sole supplier of core processors for iPhones and Huawei Technologies’ premium handsets, slipped 3.12%.
Only two Apple suppliers saw higher sales in November. Key iPhone assembler Foxconn Technology Group, formally known as Hon Hai Precision Industry, managed to mark a 1.99% rise in sales, while MacBook and Apple Watch key assembler Quanta Computer saw a 7.4% rise.
However, Foxconn attributed the growth to its communication products, which refers to telecom, networking-related devices, rather than consumer electronics such as iPhones.
Read more here.