Coronavirus boosting iPad sales in China as quarantined citizens work from home
Quarantined citizens in China are causing iPad demand to surge across the country as many are working and studying from home as a result of the widespread coronavirus outbreak, reports Digitimes.
In a new piece published on Monday, the site claims as more citizens continue to stay within the confines of their home, demand for tablets in the country are growing rapidly, so much so that some retailers are increasing the price of their electronics to cash in on the pandemic.
With many brick and mortar retailers in China closed, shoppers are turning to e-commerce platforms where Digitimes claim stock is in short supply and prices have increased. “Platforms now sell 32GB and 128GB 10.2-inch iPad devices at CNY2,499 (US$355.5) and CNY3,099 per unit, respectively, CNY200 and CNY100 higher than offered at Apple stores for corresponding models.”, says the report.
Whilst the unforeseen increased demand for iPad models across China may be benefiting Apple now, the company still has roughly only 50% of its Chinese supply chain back working at full capacity, meaning that many retailers are showing iPad as out of stock, ultimately pushing customers to purchase rival devices.
Apple revealed earlier this month that it does not expect to meet the revenue guidance it provided for the March quarter due to supply constraints and poor overall sales performance in China, backtracking on its previous forecasts for second quarter revenues which it had hoped to be in the $63 billion to $67 billion range, saying the company now doesn’t expect to hit even the lower-end of that scale.
The company is said to be shifting some of its AirPods, Apple Watch and iPad production from China to Taiwan in an effort to reduce the impact of the ongoing coronavirus inflicting Chinese production shutdowns.