China moves to widen state employee iPhone curbs: Sources

Due to Apple’s stringent privacy policies, which make it challenging for anti-corruption representatives to get and look into suspects’ devices, state-owned Chinese economic issue Economic Observer reported in 2020 that some government authorities had implemented laws to forbid officials from using iPhones.

After the Wall Street Journal initially reported the walk, Apple’s shares fell on Wednesday and Thursday amid concerns about tit-for-tat activity due to rising Sino-US stress.

According to sources, Bloomberg reported on Thursday that China intended to expand the restrictions on condition companies and organizations.

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Citi researchers noted that the news had also had an impact on Apple suppliers’ stock, stating that” the market may have overreacted to news flow amidst poor confidence total ,” citing how stock of US automaker Tesla’s suppliers fell but quickly recovered after reports of China forbidding its trucks from entering military structures in 2021.

Almost a fifth of Apple’s profit comes from China, one of its largest areas. During a visit to Beijing in March, CEO Tim Cook emphasized the company’s long-standing ties with China, where it employs thousands of workers along with its manufacturers.

According to consultancy Canalys, Apple has been experiencing strong sales in China, placing third in overall smartphone shipments in the second quarter. This is partially due to the impact of US sanctions on Huawei’s smart business, which has made it the leading premium smartphone manufacturer there.

China has emphasized using locally produced software products more and more as technology has grown to be a significant regional security concern for Beijing and Washington.

The first and most crucial areas to advance such a campaign have been government agencies and state-owned enterprises( SOEs ) in both nations.

The campaign’s main focus was on mandating that government agencies and SOEs replace foreign-made goods in their IT systems with local options.

After receiving a directive from the state resource controller requiring SOEs to finish the replacement tasks by 2027 in crucial IT infrastructure like office software platforms, this year’s replacement effort in China was accelerated.

Xiaomi, Oppo, and Vivo are some of China’s Apple competitors.

Huawei unveiled its most recent Mate 60 Pro smartphone next week. According to teardown companies, it has a internally developed sophisticated chip and could eventually catch up to Apple.