Apple CEO Tim Cook noted during the company’s earnings call this morning that China’s “economic softness” was becoming evident, but the slowdown apparently didn’t hurt Apple much its Q1 2016 financials (which cover a time span most other companies would consider Q4 2015).
During the quarter, Apple says its Greater China (mainland China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan; I’m going to just call it “China” for the rest of this article) revenues totaled US$18.37 billion. That’s up more than 14 percent year-on-year. That number also beat’s Apple’s previous China best (US$16.14 billion), making this past quarter Apple’s best-ever quarter in terms of China revenues.
This quarter’s numbers were (unsurprisingly) fueled by the company’s highest-ever China iPhone sales totals. China iPhone sales grew 18 percent this quarter, according to Cook, and almost half of the iPhones sold this quarter were to first-time buyers, which suggests Apple hasn’t come close to saturating the market. China also saw 27 percent year-on-year growth in Mac sales.
Cook said that despite the signs of economic trouble in China, Apple remains optimistic and will not change its investment plans in the country. The company will continue to invest in retail stores, and it plans to have built another 12 (to add to the 28 it already has) in the China region by this summer.
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