Shares of Apple suppliers fall on reports of China iPhone curbs (updated)

LARGAN Precision

08/09/2023 03:44

(Recasts, changes media keyword to CHINA-APPLE/STOCKS)
       TAIPEI, Sept 8 (Reuters) - The shares of several major
Apple  AAPL.O  suppliers fell on Friday, following reports that
China had widened curbs on use of iPhones by state employees,
fanning fears about sales prospects in one of the U.S. company's
biggest markets.
    Staff in at least three Chinese ministries and government
bodies were told not to use iPhones at work, sources familiar
with the matter told Reuters.
    Taiwan's TSMC  2330.TW , the world's largest contract
chipmaker and a major Apple supplier, dropped about 0.7%,
outpacing a fall of about 0.3% in the benchmark index  .TWII .
    Shares of ASE Technology Holding Co Ltd  3711.TW , one of
the world's largest semiconductor testing and packaging firms,
fell more than 2%, while camera lens-maker Largan Precision Co
Ltd  3008.TW  dropped more than 3%.
    China could well expand its curbs on officials' use of
iPhones, said Allen Huang, executive director of Mega
International Investment Services Corp in Taipei.
    "In recent years Chinese nationalism has been causing
trouble, influencing policy guidance," he said.
    Chinese mobile phone maker Huawei Technologies' new
smartphones will also do well, pressuring sales of the new
iPhone 15, Huang added.
    In China, Luxshare Precision Industry  002475.SZ , maker of
connector cables for the iPhone and MacBook as well as AirPods,
which also owns factories capable of making iPhones, fell 1.5%.
Its shares were also hit last week by the Huawei launch.
    Japanese chip equipment maker Tokyo Electron  8035.T 
dropped 4% on Friday.
    Nearly a fifth of Apple's revenue is generated in China,
where thousands of workers are employed by the company and its
suppliers. During a visit to Beijing in March, Chief Executive
Tim Cook stressed Apple's long ties with the country.

 (Reporting by Ben Blanchard and Jeanny Kao; Additional
reporting by Brenda Goh in Shanghai and Sam Nussey in Tokyo;
Editing by Edmund Klamann and Clarence Fernandez)
 ((ben.blanchard@thomsonreuters.com;))