Apple Inc. venturing into cars might shake up the electric vehicles market in the same way the iPhone revolutionised the mobile communications industry in 2007. So says Morgan Stanley.
The world's biggest company by market value plans to launch a car with full self-driving capabilities by 2025, Bloomberg News reported. The $10 trillion global mobility market is up for grabs and if Apple enters the space, it could be a "clear negative" for carmakers such as, Ford Motor Co. and Tesla Inc., Morgan Stanley autos analyst Adam Jonas wrote in a note.
Apple shares rose nearly 3% to a fresh all-time high on Thursday, wrestling back its crown as the world's most-valuable listed company from Microsoft Corp. The stock extended gains on Friday, rising as much as 0.7%. Even if the firm were to take just a 4% share of the global mobility market, Morgan Stanley sees its revenue base doubling as a result.
Biasto the upside of autonomous vehicles adoption
And there's more: If cars can drive themselves, people could use time otherwise spent at the wheel on their iPhones.
Apple's entry to any industry has regularly proved to be a catalyst in scaling up new technologies. Be it smartphones, tablets or smartwatches, the company's product launches almost always lead to an expansion of the relevant market, and to Apple taking a significant share of it.
"Our experience suggests an even greater bias to the upside on autonomous vehicles adoption within a few years of an Apple Car launch," Morgan Stanley technology analyst Katy Huberty wrote in a separate note.
Holiday season looms
While computer-driven cars are still some way off, the holiday shopping season is about to start. Recent gains in Apple and Amazon.com Inc. shares suggest investors are more optimistic that the companies can overcome supply chain snags in the most important retail quarter of the year.
After lagging behind the broader market for most of the year, Apple is on track for its best week since April with a 5.6% advance. Amazon, which has fared even worse this year, has gained about 6% this week and is on the verge of its first record since July.
Apple and Amazon sowed fears about the holiday season last month after their quarterly revenue projections fell short of estimates as a result of supply chain problems. Investors will be watching closely for clues about sales over the four-day period that starts with Black Friday on Nov. 26.
"If you're Apple, you don't want to have the brunt of supply chain issues hit in November and December," said Scott Kessler, a technology, media & telecommunications analyst at Third Bridge. "A lot of these conditions seem unprecedented, and people have learned that these risks aren't just out there in a theoretical sense, but that they're having a practical effect."
