, Columnist
Money’s Getting Tighter: China’s Ignored iPhone Alert
It’s not just about a slowing economy and the rise of cheaper devices from the likes of Huawei and Xiaomi.
When credit flows freely, consumers go upmarket.
Photographer: Shawn Koh/Bloomberg
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A slowing economy and relatively high prices have been highlighted as chief culprits behind the slump in demand for Apple Inc.’s iPhones in China. There’s a third factor that’s been overlooked: the end of easy money.
Apple last week cut its quarterly revenue forecast for the first time in almost two decades, blaming weak sales in Asia’s largest economy. Cheaper devices from the likes of Huawei Technologies Co. and Xiaomi Corp. helped to erode the iPhone maker’s market share. But slowing consumer loan growth has also hurt appetite for high-priced phones.