iphone assembler Foxconn’s January sales surge as China Covid disruption shaken off
Foxconn assembles around 70% of iPhones, including most of the premium models
Foxconn, the world’s largest contract electronics maker and major iPhone assembler for Apple Inc, said on Sunday its revenue in January jumped 48.2 per cent year-on-year, as it shook off COVID disruptions in China.
Revenue in January reached a record high, at 660.4 billion Taiwan dollars ($22 billion), with operations returning to normal and shipments increasing at its Zhengzhou campus in China, a centre for iPhone production, the company said in a statement.
Compared to the previous month, revenue was up 4.93 per cent with smart consumer electronics products, which includes smartphones, and computing products showing strong double-digit growth, it said.
Production of iPhones faced disruption ahead of Christmas and January’s Lunar New Year holidays, after curbs to control COVID-19 prompted thousands of workers to leave Foxconn’s factory lines in Zhengzhou.
Analysts say Foxconn assembles around 70 per cent of iPhones, and the Zhengzhou plant produces the majority of its premium models including the iPhone 14 Pro.
“Based on market consensus for first quarter 2023, January revenue came in slightly ahead. The outlook for the first quarter will likely reach market expectation,” Foxconn said without elaborating.
Analysts expect first-quarter revenue to grow by around 4 per cent year-on-year, according to Refinitiv.
Apple on Thursday forecast its revenue would fall for a second quarter in a row but that iPhone sales were likely to improve as production had returned to normal in China after the COVID-related shutdowns.