14 DAY TRIAL // There was a time when China was among the last on a long list of wait-your-turn countries for every new iDevice. Not anymore. Since Tim Cook took over, Apple has been turning every stone in China seeking to improve its sales there.
According to the latest estimates from at least two prominent analysts, we can safely say that Tim Cook has done a marvelous job in the country. The Cupertino company is expected to post massive iPhone sales in China, perhaps even more than in the United States.
China is crazy about the iPhone
Ben Bajarin, analyst at Creative Strategies, says that Apple is experiencing a boom in the largest smartphone market on the globe: “It's already been a good year, building up to the climax of this quarter. [...] Their potential headroom in China is higher than it is here [in the US]. They will likely do more in China than US from here on out. It certainly shows how important the China market is to Apple's upside.”
KGI’s Ming Chi Kuo agrees. In a research note dished out to investors recently, the analyst predicts that iPhone shipments (worldwide) will beat Wall Street expectations, reaching 61 million shipped units, or even more. He also threw in that the iPad will have sold roughly 10 million units.
Quarterly earnings call
These numbers will be more or less confirmed tomorrow, Tuesday, January 27, when Apple plans to disclose its earnings as well as shipments for its main business pillars, including Mac, iPhone, and iPad.
Apple will provide live audio streaming of its FY 15 First Quarter Results Conference Call at 2:00 p.m. PST/5:00 p.m. EST. Those interested in attending the live webcast will need to direct their browsers at www.apple.com/quicktime/qtv/earningsq115 and have QuickTime installed. iOS users will need firmware 4.2 or later.