2023-10-19 11:41:46
par Jennifer Mertens
published on Thursday October 19, 2023 at 1:41 p.m. •
4 min reading
The relationship between Apple and China has always been complex. On the one hand, there is a strong dependence, on the other, there is a form of rejection, even distrust. A position which, however, is not engraved in stone and which evolves strongly depending on the context.
News : Chinese Commerce Minister Wang Wentao met with Apple CEO Tim Cook in Beijing.
An encounter that could be described as banal, but which is not, given the context.
The iPhone, enemy number 1
At the beginning of September, the Chinese government banned to its employees to use iPhones, following growing tensions between China and the United States. Although Beijing denied it, Apple took the matter seriously.
iPhone 15 slow startup
This “rumor” could not have come at a worse time since it leaked a few days before the iPhone 15 was made official. Enough to push the Chinese to shun the apple brand. At the same time, Huawei, Apple’s big rival in China, launched to everyone’s surprise a new smartphone capable of competing with the iPhone 15. A month after the launch of Apple’s new smartphone, it seems that sales are already down. Compared to sales of the previous model, Counterpoint Research notes a drop of 4.5% for the same period.
Codependency
The possible ban on Chinese government employees using an iPhone and the drop in sales pushed the brand’s CEO to go to China. The unspoken objective: to strengthen its relations with Beijing.
But Apple is not the only one in demand. China is currently facing major economic problems: the long-awaited post-Covid recovery is slow to materialize. The Chinese Minister of Commerce took advantage of Tim Cook’s visit to discuss Sino-American trade relations, according to a press release from the ministry.
Beijing promotes high-level opening-up and wants to expand market access, Wang stressed. China encourages multinational companiesincluding Apple, to achieve win-win development, indicates Archyde.com who had access to the press release. It is difficult not to see this as an admission of failure, even distress, on the part of China with regard to its economy. In addition to the risks of Sino-American tensions, the brand has become aware of its excessive dependence on China for the production of its products. This is why it aims to develop in India, in particular.
Conclusion : it is difficult to imagine that one of the two parties could get rid of the other in the near future, as their co-dependence is so strong. They will have to deal with it.
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