In a recent revelation from Bloomberg News, there’s a burgeoning trend among Chinese government entities and state-affiliated corporations advising their workforce to abstain from using Apple iPhones or other foreign-manufactured devices while on duty.
This strategic move aligns with China’s persistent agenda to reduce reliance on external technologies, urging state-backed enterprises, including financial institutions, to embrace indigenous software solutions and champion the production of domestic semiconductor chips, a commitment that spans over a decade.
iPhone Ban In China During Official Working Hours Expands To 8 Provinces.
Over the last month or so, numerous state enterprises and governmental departments across at least eight provinces have issued directives mandating their employees to make the switch to local brands, as elucidated in the Bloomberg News report.
Remarkably, Apple has maintained silence in response to Reuters’ inquiry regarding this development.
This directive ripples down to smaller establishments and administrative bodies in secondary cities like Zhejiang, Shandong, Liaoning, and central Hebei, housing the world’s largest iPhone manufacturing facility. In December, these entities disseminated verbal instructions, as disclosed by Bloomberg News.
These instructions are not novel; a prior Reuters report in September indicated that personnel within at least three ministries and governmental bodies were explicitly instructed against using iPhones during official working hours.
Concurrently, Apple is diversifying its production footprint away from China. Recent insights reveal that the company is allocating resources for the developmental phase of iPad products to Vietnam. This marks a significant departure for Apple, relocating New Product Introduction (NPI) resources to Vietnam, with collaborative efforts involving China’s BYD, a pivotal iPad assembler.
Projecting forward, the report hints at the initiation of engineering verification for the trial production of a novel iPad model around mid-February, slated for release in the latter half of the upcoming year.
In October, prominent Chinese e-commerce platforms such as PDD Holdings’ Pinduoduo and Alibaba’s Taobao orchestrated substantial markdowns on Apple’s newest iPhone 15 series. Certain models were retailed at prices up to CNY 900 below the standard market price.
Despite the fervor surrounding the iPhone 15, analysts observe that its performance in the Chinese market has not paralleled its forerunner. According to Counterpoint Research in October, iPhone 15 sales in China witnessed a 4.5 percent decline compared to the initial 17 days post the market launch of iPhone 14.
