Apple said to be cutting iPhone SE production 20% over Ukraine, inflation concerns – By Brian Heater (Techcrunch) / March 28, 2022
Apple’s latest earnings report found the hardware giant exceeding expectations amid the ongoing chip shortage. All told, the company marked a 9% growth in iPhone sales, as most of the rest of the market contracted. When it comes to navigating the supply chain, there’s a lot to be said for the leverage that comes with being one of the biggest players.
But not even a giant like Apple is immune from the impact of global affairs. In the early days of the pandemic, the company declined to offer guidance, due to uncertainties. Probably the right move — given the way things have been going in the world over the past two years. And now, the latest iPhone SE is arriving to a kind of perfect storm of global issues.
Citing conversations with sources close to the matter, Nikkei Asia is reporting that Apple is cutting production on the budget handset by 20%. Observers were, no doubt, expecting some reduction, courtesy of the one-two punch of the Ukraine invasion and inflation, but the size of the figure comes as a surprise for a brand new handset — and the first addition to the series since 2020. The drop amounts to somewhere between 2-3 million handsets for the quarter.
